Sibu: The public is urged to safeguard personal information, such as identity cards, bank accounts, ATM cards, and online banking access, and not to hand it over to anyone to prevent misuse for fraud or money laundering.
Special Assistant to the Sibu MP, Irene Wong, said the reminder follows a ‘mule account’ case in Kuching involving two men who rented out their bank accounts and were subsequently fined and sentenced to imprisonment.
“This case should serve as a lesson to the public. Public should never casually share personal information or account access with others, even for work or business purposes,” she said.
According to her, in this case, the two men had rented out or lent their bank accounts to other individuals under the pretext that the accounts were needed for company financial transactions.
“However, the decision backfired when their accounts were used for suspicious transactions involving funds amounting to RM160 million,” she said.
Wong said the case was uncovered after an executive officer from the Digital Banking Department received information from the Corporate Channel Operations Department regarding the suspicious transactions.
She also noted that the government in 2024 approved amendments to the Penal Code, introducing Section 424B to tighten penalties for individuals who hand over control of their bank accounts or allow others to use them.
“Those found guilty may face fines ranging from RM10,000 to RM100,000, imprisonment of between one and seven years, or both,” she said.
She further shared that the Sibu Service Centre (DAP) had previously handled a similar case in which a man lent his bank account to another party, who then used it for money laundering.
“As a result, the man was blacklisted and faced difficulties opening bank accounts and receiving government assistance,” she said.
