KUANTAN, Oct 31 — A woman claimed to have lost over RM260,000 to a love scam syndicate after making an acquaintance with a foreign man through social media.

Pahang police chief Datuk Seri Yahaya Othman said the 32-year-old victim said the man, who claimed to be a businessman, asked her for capital, supposedly to support a struggling business.

"The victim made 14 transactions to four different accounts from October 14 to last Sunday before the suspect went incommunicado, leading the woman to realise she had been scammed,” he said in a statement today.

The woman eventually filed a police report yesterday, and the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code.

In a separate case, Yahaya said they received three police reports involving a case of non-existent tender offers through telephone calls involving losses of more than RM300,000 yesterday.

He said two tyre shop dealers, both 29, were offered tenders for the supply of tyres, spare parts and vehicle accessories after receiving a phone call from an individual posing as an employee of the Malaysian Fire and Rescue Department (JBPM).

"Another victim, a 55-year-old building contractor, received a tender offer to supply ecoflow power stations from an individual posing as an official from the Bentong Municipal Council,” he said. — Bernama