One of the four people who will be charged in court on Nov 24 on suspicion of acting as money mules. - PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
SINGAPORE (The Straits Times): Four people aged between 20 and 50 will be charged in court on Nov 24 on suspicion of acting as money mules.
They were allegedly involved in a range of scams including lottery scams and impersonation ruses, where they posed as government officials or friends of victims, the police said in a statement on Nov 23.
The four people face various offences connected to money mule activities, including conspiracy to commit cheating and assisting an unlicensed moneylending business.
All four allegedly gave their Singpass credentials to criminal syndicates to open new bank accounts, said the police. Three of them had allegedly sold their Singpass credentials to these syndicates for between $600 and $3,000.
Of the four, two men aged 33 and 50 had purportedly cheated banks into opening bank accounts before handing over the ATM cards and iBanking credentials to the criminal syndicates.
If found guilty of conspiring to cheat the banks into opening bank accounts, the pair face imprisonment of up to three years, a fine, or both.
For first-time offenders, the offence of handing over banking details to criminals is punishable with a fine of up to $5,000, jail time of up to two years, or both.
If found guilty of disclosing Singpass credentials, the four can be jailed up to 3 years, fined up to $10,000, or both.
Meanwhile, the offence of assisting an unlicensed moneylending business can lead to a fine of at least $30,000 and jail time of up to four years, for a first-time offender.
“To avoid being an accomplice in these crimes, members of the public should always reject seemingly attractive money-making opportunities promising fast and easy pay-outs for the use of their Singpass accounts (or) bank accounts,” said the police.
“Individuals will be held accountable if they are found to be linked to such crimes.”
The police urged members of the public to contact them if they have information on such scams. They can do so by calling the police hotline on 1800-255-0000, or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. - The Straits Times/ANN
