Teo and Chew were arrested at Changi Airport. - The Straits Times/Asia News Network
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/Asia News Network): Two people accused of being involved in at least 140 scam cases linked to mobile devices, allegedly causing losses totalling more than S$360,000 (RM1.2mil), were handed cheating charges in a district court on Wednesday.
Teo Jun Hao, 23, and Vanessa Chew Shi Qing, 25, were then ordered to be remanded at the Central Police Division. Their cases have been adjourned to Nov 2.
According to court documents, the duo allegedly worked together to cheat customers on online marketplace Carousell from Aug 22 to Sept 28.
The pair is said to have duped the customers into paying for mobile phones – the iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 models – even though the alleged offenders had no intention to deliver these goods to them.
Court documents did not disclose the amount that the customers were said to have paid the pair.
In an earlier statement, the police said that officers received multiple reports about the case between Oct 1 and 17.
They added: “(A) man had allegedly failed to deliver the items after payments were made by the victims via PayNow or bank transfers.
“Through follow-up investigations, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department established the identity of the duo and arrested them on (Tuesday) at Changi Airport upon their arrival in Singapore.”
They did not disclose details about where the two Singaporeans had been before returning to the country.
The police also advised members of the public to purchase their goods only from authorised sellers or reputable sources, especially for high-value items.
For each count of cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.
