Scammers are on the loose once again in Macao, and the Judiciary Police (PJ) has urged the public to be wary of a new ruse: goods order scams.
According to the PJ statement, the police recently received a report from a resident that a fraudster who impersonated a staff member of a local school called a furniture shop and claimed that they were in need of a large quantity of bunk beds and mattresses.
The purported school staff member then instructed the furniture shop owner to place an order for mattresses from their “designated” supplier, telling the furniture shop owner that they could earn a commission from the order.
After paying the deposit by bank transfer, the furniture shop owner called the school, but was informed by the school that it did not place any orders with a furniture shop.
At the same time, the furniture shop owner lost contact with the “school staff member” and the “designated supplier”, so they immediately reported the case to the police.
The PJ have received reports about several cases of fraudulent orders of foodstuff or goods, and some restaurants have suffered financial losses from similar fraud cases.
Police again urged the public, especially business operators, to stay vigilant, stressing that business operators should verify the authenticity of the people ordering large amounts of foodstuff or goods, and be “doubly cautious”, especially concerning the transfer of money, in order to prevent criminals from defrauding residents, The Macau Post Daily reported.
