In a recent incident in Kuala Lumpur, a foreign passenger managed to deceive a local ride-hailing driver using counterfeit money, resulting in a loss for the driver who failed to detect the fraud initially.

The incident occurred on the afternoon of the 13th when a ride-hailing booking was received to pick up a passenger from an apartment on Jalan Ampang. The destination was a car parts store about 12.5 kilometres away, which would take approximately 38 minutes to reach.

During the ride, the passenger did not exhibit any suspicious behaviour, except for making a call, which was believed to be to a friend to discuss business matters.

Upon arriving at the destination, the driver informed the passenger that the fare would be 28 Malaysian Ringgit. The passenger then presented a 100 Ringgit note and requested change, prompting the driver to quickly give 72 Ringgit in cash. At the time, the driver did not scrutinize the 100 Ringgit note.

It was only after moving the vehicle forward and stopping to examine the note more closely that the driver realized it was a counterfeit. By then, the passenger had already hurriedly exited the vehicle and disappeared, leaving the driver unable to confront the fraudster.

The counterfeit note was described as feeling different from genuine currency, lacking the texture and watermark features that distinguish authentic notes. This was the first encounter with counterfeit money since the driver began working with the ride-hailing service three months ago.

The suspect, who was not a Malaysian national, communicated in Malay and appeared to be in their 30s with a slim build and dark skin. No police report was filed as the suspect provided a foreign phone number through the ride-hailing app and left no identifiable personal information, making it difficult to assist law enforcement.

For now, the counterfeit note has been kept at home, and the driver urges other ride-hailing drivers to be vigilant. Drivers are advised to carefully inspect large denomination notes and to double-check their authenticity when accepting payments.