Cops bust syndicate selling bogus car registration numbers

PETALING JAYA: Police have busted a syndicate selling bogus vehicle registration numbers with the arrest of four people in separate raids in Negeri Sembilan, Kuala Lumpur and Kedah.

Acting Perak police chief Zulkafli Sariaat said the raids were carried out following a report lodged by a 22-year-old man at the Kampar police headquarters last Wednesday, claiming he had fallen victim to the scam.

Zulkafli said the syndicate was believed to have amassed tens of thousands of ringgit by deceiving victims through advertisements for bogus car registration numbers on social media platforms.

“Three raids were conducted from Jan 10 until yesterday, leading to the arrest of four suspects aged between 27 and 52 in Gemencheh, Negeri Sembilan; Setapak, Kuala Lumpur; and Langkawi, Kedah.

“Police also seized five mobile phones, seven bank cards, two computers, and two printing devices believed to have been used by the syndicate,” he said in a statement.

He said the complainant had come across the syndicate’s advertisement on Facebook, offering RM2,000 for each registration number. The complainant then transferred RM1,000 to a bank account as a deposit.

The complainant informed the police that after the deposit was made, his calls to the company were blocked. The complainant also conducted checks with the road transport department in Ipoh and found that the registration number purchased was registered under another person’s name.

“Checks on the name of the company found that it was non-existent and not registered with the Companies Commission of Malaysia,” Zulkafli added.

He added that apart from Perak, the syndicate had also scammed several people in Selangor, Kedah and Johor.

He said checks using the company’s name and bank account numbers revealed that eight other police reports had been filed against the syndicate, with losses amounting to RM71,400.

Zulkafli said the four suspects have been remanded until Friday for further investigation and they were being investigated for cheating.