Hong Kong police have arrested 17 people and seized HK$3.67 million in a crackdown on a fraud syndicate that recruited foreign “runners” from Malaysia to collect crime proceeds from victims.

The force’s Kowloon West crime squad said on Sunday that the arrests were made in connection with “guess who I am” phone scams that duped 22 victims out of about HK$2.5 million between June and August. The single largest loss was HK$700,000.

Such cons typically involve scammers calling victims and impersonating relatives or friends to request quick cash to settle bogus claims of arrests or other emergencies.

Police said the crime syndicate had recruited runners from Malaysia to collect the cash directly from victims and take it to three transit points. They were offered HK$500 to HK$1,000 a day, with their flights and accommodation also covered, the force added.

“When officers successfully located the address of a victim and arrived at their door to investigate, the victim was still unaware that he had been scammed and firmly believed the money he had handed over earlier was paid to police [for bail],” Senior Inspector Ng Yin-pak said.

“Police successfully recovered the entire HK$200,000 in defrauded funds for the victim in the operation.”

Following an investigation, officers have arrested 12 Malaysian men, aged 20 to 48, on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud over the past two months.