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IRD, banks fleeced in scam involving three parties
KUALA LUMPUR (July 4, 2012): A syndicate of despatch clerks from banks and law firms has amassed millions in a scam involving the interception of Inland Revenue Department (IRD) stamp duty cheques.
The complex scheming of the syndicate, which even left the police bewildered by the way it was executed, went on undetected for a whole year since April 2011, causing losses to at least six local and foreign banks in the Klang Valley.
The scam revolved around an exchange of cheques between the despatchers and runners who made a fortune from it and were aware that it would take months or even years before they are found out.
Kuala Lumpur police chief DCP Datuk Mohmad Salleh said today that police busted the syndicate with the arrest of 10 people in various locations in the Klang Valley.
Those arrested included runners and despatch clerks from banks and law firms. He said the suspects, including the mastermind, aged between 25 and 35, were arrested over five weeks beginning May 6. The 10th suspect was arrested on Tuesday.
The arrests led to the recovery of RM81,000 and 41 banker’s cheques worth a total of RM373,000 issued for IRD stamp duty payments.
Also seized were dud IRD rubber stamps, falsified documents and other items. Mohamad Salleh explained that the scam involved three parties, namely:
>> the syndicate’s mastermind; >> the bank despatch clerks who supplied the syndicate with cheques meant for IRD stamp duty payments for a variety of transactions such as loans; and >> the law firm runners who buy the cheques from the syndicate.
He said the banker’s cheques were supposed to be delivered to the IRD by the despatchers who were expected to return with a stamped letter of receipt or acknowledgment from the tax department.
He said instead, the depatchers handed over the cheques made out to the IRD to the syndicate’s mastermind, who in turn used fake IRD rubber stamps and falsified signatures on the letters of acknowledgement, to avoid any suspicion by the bank.
“These cheques, all which were made out to the IRD’s stamp duty collector, remained untampered and were then ‘recycled’, he said at a press conference.
It is purchased mainly by runners from law firms who were given a specific amount of cash to get a banker’s cheque also for IRD stamp duty payments.
This is how the scam works: Say a bank sends out a RM10,000 cheque being an IRD stamp duty payment on behalf of their client through their despatcher. The despatcher hands the cheque over to the mastermind, who then passes him a letter of acknowlegment, purportedly from the IRD.
Later, a law firm runner who is given RM10,000 to buy an IRD Stamp duty cheque from a bank, contacts the mastermind and enquires if he has a cheque for the amount.
If there is one, the law firm runner collects the cheque and hands over RM7,000 to the mastermind, keeping RM3,000 for himself. The mastermind now calls up the bank despatch clerk and tells him the cheque is “sold.”
He then pays the despatcher who passed him the original cheque RM4,000, and pocketing the balance. The law firm runner then makes payment for his employer’s client using the cheque he acquired from the mastermind. However, the IRD stamp duty by the bank’s client remains unpaid.
The complicated scam was uncovered on April 26 after an alert officer at a bank in Cheras lodged a police report after spotting discrepancies in an acknowledgment letter submitted by a despatch clerk.
The Cheras commercial crime investigations department immediately launched a probe and broke the case within a week. Mohmad said police are looking for another seven men who were part of the syndicate.
He said police are checking if the scam is widespread nationwide and advised banks to scrutinise records to ensure such transactions with IRD were in order.
--------------------------------- senang2 je bank, loyer kena tipu | 
Post time 5-7-2012 12:26 PM
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