Police Crack Down Mule Accounts, Over 2,000 Individuals Arrested Nationwide

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 30 (Bernama) -- The police have cracked down on thousands of mule accounts being misused for online fraud, leading to more than 2,000 arrests, in two large-scale operations conducted nationwide.

Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa said 1,303 individuals suspected of involvement in mule account activities were arrested under “Operasi Mule NSRC” conducted from Sept 22 to 28.

He said the highest number of arrests was in Sarawak, with 272 people, followed by Sabah (200), Kuala Lumpur (137) and Selangor (115), while the others were in other states.

He said 778 investigation papers were opened.

"Of the total, suspects in 270 of the investigation papers (35 per cent) have been charged in court under the Penal Code, including sections 420 and 424," he told a special press conference here today.

He said the operation, which was carried out in conjunction with the launch of the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC), aimed to combat commercial crimes involving the use of fake accounts to receive money from online fraud.

 The other operation, Operation Merpati, conducted from Sept 2 to 12, led to the arrest of  790 individuals for having bank accounts used for e-commerce fraud, while another 30 were arrested for operating call centres for fraudulent activities nationwide.

"The 790 individuals arrested consist of 475 men and 315 women, who included four foreigners, comprising Indonesians and Bangladeshis," he said, adding that e-commerce fraud from January to May this year caused losses of more than RM54 million.

For Operation Merpati, Rusdi said a total of 660 investigation papers were opened involving losses of more than RM11 million, with 41.7 per cent of the cases already filed in court, and the rest are still under investigation.

"The two operations demonstrate the CCID’s commitment to combating online fraud, which is becoming increasingly sophisticated and crossing state borders," he said and reminded the public not to lend or sell bank accounts and ATM cards to other parties, as such acts are offences that can be misused for criminal activities and money laundering.

-- BERNAMA