HULU SELANGOR: Police have dismantled a fly-by-night fraud syndicate that has been actively cheating goods suppliers using counterfeit payment receipts since early June.
Five syndicate members were arrested during two separate police operations conducted recently in Selangor.
Selangor police chief Datuk Shazeli Kahar confirmed the first operation resulted in three male arrests aged between 53 and 58 at a Bandar Mahkota Cheras car service centre.
Police seized various stolen items including plastic packaging, oil palm fertiliser, kitchen supplies, gas cylinders, and industrial equipment during the operation.
Investigators also discovered a Kajang warehouse used by the syndicate to store fraudulently obtained goods from victimised suppliers.
The warehouse discovery enabled police to solve six fraud cases in Selangor with losses totalling RM166,338.10 and two additional cases in Perak involving RM55,515.70.
Further investigations led to the arrest of two additional suspects including a 52-year-old local man and a 30-year-old Pakistani national.
Criminal record checks revealed three suspects had previous records for cheating offences under Section 420 of the Penal Code.
One suspect had records under the Film Censorship Act and Dangerous Drugs Act while the Pakistani national had no prior criminal history.
Two suspects tested positive for methamphetamine during police screening procedures.
All five suspects have been remanded for seven days until October 8 to assist investigations under Section 420 of the Penal Code.
The syndicate operated by placing purchase orders via telephone calls to victim companies before submitting fabricated receipts as proof of payment.
They utilised transport company services to collect goods from suppliers but diverted deliveries to different locations than originally specified.
Syndicate members then resold the fraudulently obtained goods at 50% discounts from their original market prices.
Datuk Shazeli Kahar advised company suppliers to verify customer payments have been fully received before releasing any purchased goods.
This precautionary measure helps businesses avoid falling victim to similar fraudulent schemes targeting the supply chain. – Bernama