SMS fraud syndicate: Six more individuals remanded

The three-day remand order starting today to Nov 15 was issued by Magistrate Shah Wira Abdul Halim against five men and a woman wearing MACC orange uniform, at the hearing of an MACC application at Putrajaya Magistrate Court here today.

According to an MACC source, the six individuals aged between 34 and 49 were detained at MACC Putrajaya headquarters between 4.45 pm yesterday and 12.30 am this morning after being present to give statement to MACC.

The source said they were suspected of giving and receiving grafts to obtain the personal data information of pre-paid customers.

“The telephone numbers obtained would be used by a fraud syndicate content provider to charge subscription fees through sms without the knowledge and agreement of the consumers,” he said.

On Tuesday, three company directors including two with ‘Datuk’ title were remanded for five days until Nov 14 over the same case of offering bribes amounting to millions of ringgit to the telecommunication company officer to obtain the telephone number of customers for scamming purposes.

Later another telecommunication company officer was remanded for five days until Nov 15 and yesterday two more individuals including the chief technology officer of a telecommunication company were remanded for five days until Nov 16.

The case is investigated under Section 16 of the MACC Act 2009.