KOTA BARU, Dec 20 — Seven policemen have been sacked in Kelantan since early January to date, said state police chief Datuk Shafien Mamat.

According to him, the action was taken after they were found guilty by the courts for various offences such as drug addiction and committing crimes.

"So far this year, a total of 116 reports were received by the Kelantan Department of Integrity and Standards Compliance (JIPS) regarding misconduct by officers and rank-and-file personnel.

"Of the total, 61 cases have been resolved while the remaining 55 cases are still under investigation,” he told reporters after the Monthly Assembly at the Kelantan Police Contingent Headquarters (IPK) here today.

Commenting further, Shafien said most of the cases involved low-ranking personnel and occurred at the district level.

In other developments, Shafien said a total of 770 cases of fraud with a total loss of RM14.2 million were recorded by the Commercial Crime Investigation Department (JSJK) in the state from January to November 30 this year compared to 866 cases with a total loss of RM17 million last year.

"Although the number of cases dropped, e-commerce and online investment fraud showed an increase with 318 and 68 cases respectively.

"Most cases of fraud like this occur due to the victims lack of knowledge because they should first investigate the legitimacy of the party they are dealing with,” he said. — Bernama