Conman walks away with RM600,000 after bank heist

The casually dressed man didn't raise any suspicion and even chatted with the guard on his way out.

PETALING JAYA: It was like a scene from a movie at a bank in Damansara Heights where a conman dressed in a T-shirt, shorts and slippers managed to walk away with RM600,000 in cash.

According to theSun daily, the incident took place at about 12.30pm on Sept 8.

The man told the bank staff that he was a fire extinguisher technician and had been appointed to inspect the bank’s fire extinguishers.

He reportedly showed the staff a document which was supposedly a floor plan of the bank, but did not possess any official papers.

When he could not produce any identification, the bank manager refused to allow him to carry out the inspection. However, CCTV footage showed that the man continued to loiter around the premises before sneaking through a door behind the counters.

Once he was inside, he pretended to check the extinguishers while unsuspecting staff members continued to serve their customers.

Although access to the bank’s safe room required a personal code possessed only by the manager and the chief cashier, the man managed to disable the auto-latch door by placing a piece of magnet on it when the cashier entered the room, the report said.

Once the cashier left the safe room, CCTV footage showed the man stepping in and stuffing wads of cash into his backpack before coolly walking out of the bank.

Sources told the daily that he had even stopped to chat with the security guard on his way out. He is also believed to have held a conversation with the cashier before stealing the money.

It was not until the manager returned from his lunch break at 2.30pm that the theft was discovered.

A police report was lodged, and the manager and the cashier were arrested and questioned before being cleared of any involvement.

However, both staff have reportedly been suspended from duty. Investigators also questioned the negligence of staff members, pointing out that the man had no identification documents and wore no uniform.

“He neither had an identification card of any company nor was he clad in attire that technicians usually wear. He was casually dressed in shorts, T-shirt and slippers. All these should have raised suspicion,” sources were quoted as saying. -FMT