JOHOR BARU: An oil palm plantation manager lost RM1.9 million after being scammed into investing in a non-existent cryptocurrency investment.

Johor police chief Datuk M Kumar said the 69-year-old man claimed to have been offered the investment by an unknown individual via the WhatsApp application and was instructed to download the investment application before starting cryptocurrency trading.

He said the elderly man, lured by the offer of a profit of 20 to 40 per cent, did what was instructed by the suspect and his name was then included in a WhatsApp group for him to receive further instructions.

"The victim made payments totalling RM1.9 million into several bank accounts as instructed between December 2024 and February last year.

"After the payment was made, he saw his investment status on the application recording a profit of USD22.2 million.

"However, when he wanted to withdraw the money, he was asked to make another payment. Believing that he had been scammed, he lodged a police report yesterday," he said in a statement today.

The case is investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.