A SENIOR citizen has lost RM299,373.40 after falling victim to a cryptocurrency investment scam advertised on Facebook, Batu Pahat police chief Ismail Dollah said.

He said the 62-year-old woman contacted the scam operator in April.

Besides Facebook, the pensioner also used WhatsApp to join the investment scheme by a company called Bitcoin Yoamax.

“The victim deposited RM35,320 through seven transactions in stages. She also shared her personal details including her name, identity card number and banking information, and downloaded the Yoamax app,” Ismail said in a statement today.

He said the victim was contacted by the operator, who claimed she earned a profit from her initial investment, but was asked to deposit RM164,417 to withdraw the profit.

Ismail said the suspect told the victim the deposit would be returned to her if she was not involved in money laundering.

“The victim was also required to deposit an additional RM99,636 for foreign currency exchanges.

“But the victim has not received any payment or profit. She lodged a report at the Batu Pahat police headquarters yesterday,” he said.

The case is being investigated under section 420 of the penal code. – Bernama, November 6, 2023.