Police Report Filed Against Student Who Cheated NGOs Of Over RM250K To Fund Gambling Habit
The 23-year-old had previously apologised for defrauding other NGOs.
Cancer Survivors Malaysia (CSM) has lodged a police report against a university student for alleged fraud after he claimed he needed assistance in paying his tuition fees
According to the New Straits Times, CSM chairman Zuraini Kamal said the 23-year-old student, who identified himself as Lim, contacted her on Sunday, 20 October, requesting assistance to raise RM5,000 for his tuition fees.
According to Zuraini, the student claimed that his family was facing financial difficulties and that he would be expelled from the public university if he did not pay the fee.
"Out of sympathy, I posted his plight on my Facebook page, together with his bank account number, asking friends to help him as I was worried he might not be able to continue his studies," Zuraini said.
She managed to raise RM1,176 for him within a few hours.
Image via Zuliaty Zulkifli/New Straits Times
However, when Zuraini reached out to another non-governmental organisation (NGO) in Penang for additional assistance, she discovered that the NGO had previously helped him raise over RM30,000 in donations, which he allegedly used for online gambling
Zuraini said she attempted to confront the student, but he denied the allegations and even threatened self-harm.
In a Facebook post, Zuraini revealed that the student had previously deceived several other prominent individuals and charitable organisations in Kedah and Penang with the same excuse for over two years, misusing over RM250,000 in public donations for online gambling.
According to China Press, however, the student was let off in April this year after threatening to commit suicide. He had written a letter of repentance to the police, promising not to gamble again and to return the money to his donors after graduating from university.
Zuraini said she decided to report the matter to the Kubang Pasu police headquarters in Kedah today, 22 October, to prevent other NGOs from falling victim to the student
While the case was widely reported in Chinese-language newspapers, she said the student had begun to deceive the Malay community, who were unaware of his modus operandi.
She added that while Lim has returned the donation amount of RM1,176 to her, and his father has contacted her several times to apologise, she did not want future undeserving fund applicants to exploit the kindness of the Malaysian public.
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