LTTE fighter makes ‘killing’ in credit card scams and extortion
Kuala Lumpur: While he bided his time hiding out in Malaysia, a
senior Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) fighter has been raking
in hundreds of thousands of ringgit scamming and even extorting his
fellow men. It is learnt that the 37-year-old man, who was detained in
the city on August 7, had been active in the most profitable of all
scams – forging credit cards.
Sources revealed that he was part of a syndicate that cloned credit
cards held by a Sri Lankan member residing in Canada.
The cards were cloned multiple times.
“They would then pass the forged cards to fellow Sri Lankans heading
to Malaysia. Once here, they would withdraw money using the cards,” said
the source.
However, the matter did not end there. The syndicate member in Canada
would make reports of “illegal” transactions carried out in Malaysia
using his cards.
“Acting as if he is the victim, the man (in Canada) would lodge
police reports before claiming insurance from the banks. In other words,
the syndicate would rake in profits from both ends,” another source
revealed.
It is believed that the senior LTTE fighter was also involved in
other syndicates forging passports and even illegally obtained United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) cards.
Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Khalid Abu Bakar said the man had
used a social visitor pass to enter the country.
“Initial investigations showed that the suspect used Malaysia as a
hideout and even extorted his fellow countrymen. We believe he was
trying to amass funds to revive the LTTE movement in Sri Lanka,” he said
yesterday.
The man, he said, had also admitted to being part of the credit card
scam syndicate, masterminded by other foreigners.
He was detained under Section 15 (1) (C) of the Immigration Act
1959/63 for overstaying before being deported yesterday.
“Our Sri Lankan counterpart will act further on the matter,” he said.
Sources said the police chose to deport the man as they wanted to get
such negative criminal elements out of the country as soon as possible.
- thestar.com.my
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