44 'money mules' nabbed, involving RM17.29m in losses

KUALA LUMPUR: Bukit Aman Commercial CID has arrested 44 individuals believed to be holding 'mule accounts' after their accounts were involved in several cases of cybercrime in a first mule account operation this year.
Commercial CID director Datuk Seri Amar Singh Ishar Singh said the suspects comprised 17 men and 27 women aged between 21 and 27 with more than five repeated cyber crime police reports lodged against each of them.
"The operation was conducted simultaneously nationwide targeting account owners receiving more than five police reports in various fraud rings such as Macau Scam, African Scam, and E-Financial Fraud.
"Most of the account owners apprehended were women who act as intermediaries to scammers in 319 cybercrime investigation papers involving losses amounting to RM17.29 million," he said at a media conference at Bukit Aman here today.
According to Amar, money mules are people who allowed their bank accounts to be used by cybercriminals to facilitate the transfer money from scam activities.
He said most cybercrime masterminds were foreigners who needed locals to act as intermediaries to transfer the scammed money to the operators' accounts in foreign countries.
"Some of these money mules were offered part of the scammed money or rewarded with expensive items apart from using internet love scam to entice some to be unsuspecting money mules," he said.
He said all suspects would be charged in court under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating. — Bernama