Thursday October 28, 2010
By TAN KARR WEI
karrwei@thestar.com.my
A COUPLE living in the Sungai Way new village in Petaling Jaya lost RM10,000 to a woman who allegedly used black magic to “charm” her victims.
The 58-year-old victim, who only wanted to be known as Madam Koon, said the incident happened around noon on Aug 17.
Koon and her husband run a furniture shop in the new village and live on the first floor above their shop.
She said that she got to know the scammer, known to her as Madam Lim, from a karaoke joint in Petaling Jaya New Town that she visited with her husband.
“I’ve met her a few times but we were never close. On the day of the incident, she came to my house in a black shirt asking to borrow money to cure some sickness,” explained Koon during a press conference with Kam-pung Tunku assemblyman Lau Weng San at the community hall in SS9A/1.
Unfortunate: Lau holding up the photocopied identification card of the scammer and withdrawal slip, with the victim next to him who preferred not to be photographed.Upon hearing the commotion upstairs, her husband also went up to see what was happening.
“When I refused, she threatened to strip in front of my husband. I think she must have used some form of charm to hypnotise us because we did what she asked us to without any resistance,” said Koon.
She said even her two dogs, which usually barked at strangers, were quiet and she suspected that they were also put under the spell.
However, both Koon and her husband could remember clearly what had transpired from the time they saw Lim until they came to their senses at about 9pm.
“Since it was quite a large amount of money, I asked for her identification card and she made me a copy,” she said.
Koon said she subsequently walked to a nearby bank with Lim and withdrew RM10,000 from her account.
“I even remember the clerk asking my why I wanted to withdraw so much money and I just told her to hurry up,” said Koon.
She said that they had tried looking for Lim at the address on the identification card but the guard at the flats said that she had not come home for quite some time.
“Her son is staying there but when we approached him, he said that he had cut off ties with his mother,” she said.
Lau said these incidents involving the use of charms were quite common in new villages.
“I advise people to be more careful and come forward to lodge a police report if it happens to them,” he said.
Lau said that he had also written to the bank in Sungai Way to alert them of the incident and to be more vigilant if customers went in to withdraw large sums of money.
“When I refused, she threatened to strip in front of my husband. I think she must have used some form of charm to hypnotise us because we did what she asked us to without any resistance,” said Koon.
She said even her two dogs, which usually barked at strangers, were quiet and she suspected that they were also put under the spell.
However, both Koon and her husband could remember clearly what had transpired from the time they saw Lim until they came to their senses at about 9pm.
“Since it was quite a large amount of money, I asked for her identification card and she made me a copy,” she said.
Koon said she subsequently walked to a nearby bank with Lim and withdrew RM10,000 from her account.
“I even remember the clerk asking my why I wanted to withdraw so much money and I just told her to hurry up,” said Koon.
She said that they had tried looking for Lim at the address on the identification card but the guard at the flats said that she had not come home for quite some time.
“Her son is staying there but when we approached him, he said that he had cut off ties with his mother,” she said.
Lau said these incidents involving the use of charms were quite common in new villages.
“I advise people to be more careful and come forward to lodge a police report if it happens to them,” he said.
Lau said that he had also written to the bank in Sungai Way to alert them of the incident and to be more vigilant if customers went in to withdraw large sums of money.
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