M'sian woman tries to buy S$6,000 worth of Labubu dolls, gets scammed

A woman in Malaysia was reportedly cheated of around RM20,000 (S$6,000) when she tried to buy Labubu dolls from an Instagram seller.

The lady in her 20s had first made a successful purchase of one doll, before proceeding to order a few more of the popular little monster dolls.

This was so as the process of buying the first doll with the seller went smoothly the first time.

However, this appears to be a new modus operandi used by at least one scammer to earn the trust of buyers before scamming them.

What happened

The woman paid RM2,000 (S$600) for a popular version of the doll via a seller on Instagram in August, according to China Press.

Prices for the little monster toy can range from S$13.90 to S$1,199.

With over 3,000 followers and many positive customer reviews, the woman believed the seller was legitimate.

To her delight, the Labubu doll she received was not only of good quality and price, but further inspection led the woman to conclude that it was not a counterfeit.

Made multiple transactions

That impression soon gave way to a stark reality when the woman placed a second larger order with the same seller.

This time, the seller asked the woman to transfer the payment online in five installments to five different bank accounts.

Since the first transaction went smoothly, the woman trusted the seller's instructions and transferred approximately RM20,000 (S$6,000).

When she failed to receive an update on the delivery two days later, the woman texted the seller to only learn she was blocked.

It is not known if she was the only victim.

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Top image via Pop Mart Instagram.