Kuala lumpur: The Royal Malaysia Police (PDRM) arrested a total of 2,251 individuals through four special operations nationwide to crack down on online scam syndicates from January until early this month. Bukit Aman Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) director Datuk Rusdi Mohd Isa said the four integrated operations were Ops Taring, Ops Belatuk, Ops Frontier and Ops Cenderahati.
According to BERNAMA News Agency, the operations led to significant arrests and seizures. Ops Taring, which focused on call centre activities from January 26 to February 5, resulted in the arrest of 430 individuals aged between 17 and 66. Of those, 270 were foreigners from countries including China, Indonesia, and Taiwan, while the remaining 160 were locals acting as operators and communication providers. These syndicates used tactics such as impersonating enforcement officers and financial institutions to deceive their victims.
In Ops Taring, police seized communication equipment valued at approximately RM307,860. A total of 74 investigation papers were opened under the operation, with 18 cases having been charged in court.
Ops Belatuk, targeting part-time job and e-commerce scam activities from April 13 to 19, saw the arrest of 403 individuals. The operation focused on individuals acting as mule account holders, recruiters, and suppliers of ATM cards, as well as syndicate cash withdrawers. Among the arrested, 358 were identified as mule account holders, while 45 individuals were believed to be directly involved in the criminal chain, representing 11 syndicates. This operation was initiated following a significant rise in part-time job scams, which increased by 173 per cent last year, resulting in losses of RM219.6 million.
Meanwhile, Ops Frontier, initiated on April 1, aimed to combat online scam activities and mule accounts linked to cases reported to the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC). As of last Sunday, 1,372 individuals were arrested under this operation.
Finally, Ops Cenderahati led to the arrest of 46 individuals involved in scam activities related to the supply of souvenirs from non-existent suppliers.