A Malaysian artist, Maggie Tan, has revealed how she was scammed of RM5,000 by a man who posed as a teacher from her former high school.
She decided to speak out about the incident in hopes that others will be more alert and not fall into the same trap.
The approach: “Your school needs you”
According to a Facebook post by Maggie, the scammer contacted her by introducing himself as a teacher from Chong Hwa High School KL, her alma mater.

He claimed that the school principal wanted her to return to contribute by teaching art to students.
The scammer cleverly played on her identity as a proud alumni, flattering her by saying she was capable and admired by juniors.
Maggie explained that this lowered her guard, as she had indeed been invited back years ago to give a motivational talk at the school.
I didn’t think much of it. I just thought, as a senior alumni, maybe I could help the school again,” she said.
The urgent request for ping pong tables
The very next day, Maggie received another message from the scammer. This time, the request sounded urgent.
He told me that the school urgently needed four ping pong tables, because an important guest was scheduled to visit the very next day. It was a last-minute request, and the tables needed to be delivered quickly to make the school look presentable.

To convince her, the scammer even sent her a screenshot of a fake bank transfer.
When I confirmed that no funds had been credited, I informed this “teacher.”
He explained that because the transfer amount was large, the bank might take one to two hours to process it.” she said.

Losing RM5,000 in two transfers
Maggie was then introduced to a so-called “supplier,” who insisted that she needed to pay upfront before the tables could be delivered.

Feeling pressured, she transferred RM3,000 first.
But shortly after, the “supplier” contacted her again, claiming there were additional costs.
“He kept urging me to find a way to transfer more before they would deliver. I felt truly helpless – I was very busy, I wanted to help, and I wanted to resolve the matter quickly. So I ended up using my personal savings account to transfer another RM2,000.” she shared.
Once the second transfer was made, both the scammer and supplier disappeared.
The painful truth
Realising something was wrong, Maggie later contacted a teacher at Chong Hwa to verify the story.
That was when the truth hit her hard.
“Afterwards, I confirmed with a teacher currently at the school, and she said she had never heard of this person’s name. She also told me I wasn’t the first case,” she said.
Warning others
Maggie later learned that she wasn’t the only alumni who had been targeted in similar scams.
She decided to share her experience on social media as a warning.
“Perhaps many of you are sharper than I and can see through these tactics. Right now I’m writing this with raw feelings of regret over my actions, and I hope others won’t let the label of being a “helpful person” cloud their judgment,” she urged.
