AS the Covid-19 cases are on the rise, scam cases in the Penang northeast district are also on the upward trend.
Between January and April this year alone, a total of 111 cases were reported compared to 89 cases that were recorded during the same period last year.
Northeast district police chief ACP Soffian Santong, in revealing this, said the increase of 22 cases showed that the level of awareness among the people was still lacking.
“Many of these scammers are operating from rented flats or premises and it’s important for us to know and understand our neighbourhood.
“When you sense something amiss near to your neighbourhood, don’t hesitate to inform us (police) so that we can proceed to check further.
“The public must verify with relevant authorities when they receive any suspicious calls.
“This is important to ensure that they are not cheated by these unscrupulous scammers.
“Sometimes, I really pity them that their hard-earned savings had gone to these scammers in a split of second,” he said in his speech during a talk on online scam at a community centre in Lintang Kampung Melayu 1 today.
Soffian hoped the public would not fall prey to these scammers in the future, adding that they should follow the news reports on such cases and be on guard.
Air Itam assemblyman Joseph Ng, who was present, was glad to see the cooperation between the Air Itam community centre and the police to hold the talk for the betterment of the people.
He said such talk was important to create awareness among the community.
“Although the usage of science and technology elements has become evident in our livelihoods nowadays, the cybercrime cases have also become more prevalent.
“Online purchase has also become a new norm for the people in view of the movement control order (MCO) since last year.
“Hence, some unscrupulous people have taken advantage to misuse this platform.
“I hope more people will be aware of all these scams through this talk,” he said.
Bukit Gelugor MP Ramkarpal Singh expressed hopes that the public would verify with any other authorities when they encounter such scams.
Also present was Northeast district Commercial Crime investigating officer Insp Uthman Affan Abdoll Kader.
Story and pix by Edmund Lee