SINGAPORE: Four people were arrested and over S$440,000 in suspected scam proceeds seized in an islandwide operation against suspected money mule activities earlier this month.
The suspects were two men and two women aged between 18 and 22.
Police said they were also investigating 20 others for their suspected involvement in money mule activities, following the operation that took place between Oct 14 and 17.
Acting on information provided by GXS Bank, a digital bank backed by Grab Holdings and Singtel, the police identified the suspects as money mules.
The suspects allegedly relinquished newly opened GXS bank accounts, mostly over Telegram, for as much as $500 per account, said the police on Oct 24.
Some of them allegedly responded to online advertisements for new bank account applications with attractive cashback opportunities and gave scammers access to their mobile phones to open the new GXS bank accounts.
Some had also allegedly handed over their SingPass credentials for as much as $500 per set, which were then purportedly used by criminal syndicates to open corporate bank accounts for use in money laundering.
Police are also investigating various offences, including the offences of assisting another to retain benefits of criminal conduct and unauthorised disclosure of access code.
If found guilty of assisting another to retain benefits of criminal conduct under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act, suspects can be jailed for up to three years, fined up to $50,000, or both.
Those guilty of the offence of unauthorised disclosure of access code under the Computer Misuse Act faces a jail term of up to three years, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the ScamShield Helpline at 1799.
Anyone with information on such scams may call the police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness. All information will be kept strictly confidential.
According to the police’s mid-year scam and cybercrime statistics released on Aug 22, the number of cases in the first half of 2024 increased to a new record high of 26,587, up from 22,853 during the same period in 2023.
Victims in the early half of 2024 lost more than $385.6 million, compared with $309.4 million lost in the same period in 2023. - The Straits Times/ANN
