S’porean Shopper In Johor Bahru Told RM50 Notes She Withdrew From CIMB ATM Are Fake Notes

Imagine drawing money from the ATM and being told that the money drawn is fake when you try to spend it. 

Well, for 35-year-old Lilian Tan, she didn’t have to imagine this because it actually happened to her. 

What Happened?

Mothership reported that on 7th December, Lilian withdrew a total of RM 1,500 from a CIMB ATM at Komtar JBCC shopping mall. 

Image: KSL City Directory

The money came in RM50 notes. 

Time For A Massage

Initially, Lilian did not think that the notes were fake and she headed to get a massage at a massage parlour called the House of Javanese Massage. 

This wasn’t the first time she was there as she was a regular who often frequented that massage parlour. 

She was there with a friend so she then paid the bill up front for two people before their massage. 

It cost a total of RM 110 so she used 2 of the RM50 she got from the atm and another RM 10 note she already had to foot the bill. 

When she paid, nothing was said about the money or about the notes. 

Fake Notes!

But after the massage, Lilian was told that the two RM 50 notes she used were fake. 

Image: Giphy

Checking the other notes in her wallet, Lilian said that looked authentic but the ones the receptionist passed back to her and claimed were fake looked different from the others in her wallet. 

Image: Shutterstock.com/ Fitria Ramli

The receptionist said that the fake notes were from Lilian, stating that they were from her because she was the last customer of the day. 

Lilian wanted to make a police report then but since it was already past 10pm and her train that was heading back to Singapore left at 10.45pm, she didn’t manage to. 

The Receptionist

Lilian was confused as to why the receptionist didn’t just reject her notes when she first paid.

Instead, she received the fake notes stapled together only after her massage, which seemed a little suspicious. 

She considered the possibility that the notes she paid with were actually real, authentic notes but were switched for fake ones during her massage.

Not The Only One

She added that she has read reports online about CIMB ATM giving out fake notes.

She then decided to email the bank about the incident and requested them to verify the serial numbers that were on the fake notes to see if they were really the notes she had withdrawn.

Hopefully the truth of the matter will come to light soon. 

Image: Giphy

At any rate, this case also serves as a reminder for us to always take note of the money we withdraw from ATMs and be sure to check for signs if they are real or fake.

Though, seriously, I don’t think you’d do that. In fact, I don’t think you even count the money #justsaying