In an islandwide operation which took place between Jan 2 and Jan 24 in Singapore, officers worked with local banks to trace the money lost by scam victims. - Photo: ST
SINGAPORE: More than S$1.32 million was seized and 46 people arrested, following a January operation targeting two types of scams that cause higher losses than others: government official impersonation and investment.
Some of the victims of these types of scams have been conned out of their entire life savings, said the police in a statement on Friday (Feb 7).
In an islandwide operation which took place between Jan 2 and Jan 24, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department’s Anti-Scam Command and Police Land Divisions’ Scam Strike Teams worked with local banks to trace the money lost by scam victims.
This led to more than 400 bank accounts being frozen, and the seizure of more than $1.32 million in suspected scam proceeds.
The police also conducted raids across Singapore to hunt down those who had given up their bank accounts to scammers for money laundering.
Some 37 men and nine women were arrested, with another 80 people investigated.
Victims of government official impersonation scams typically received a phone call from conmen claiming to be from a bank.
The scammers would allege that suspicious or fraudulent financial transactions were made using the victims’ credentials.
After the victims denied making such transactions, they were directed to other scammers posing as police officials or staff from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
These scammers accused victims of being involved in criminal activities such as money laundering, and deceived them into transferring their money to “safety accounts” that the scammers claimed would be used for investigations.
Instead, those accounts were controlled by the scammers.
Investment scams involved imposters befriending victims on online platforms and introducing them to lucrative investment activities.
Some victims also came across such false opportunities through online advertisements or were added to investment chat groups on messaging platforms.
Victims were then persuaded to transfer money or cryptocurrencies into fake investment accounts.
They were promised attractive returns, only to find out later that they were unable to withdraw their capital.
Police investigations are ongoing.
“To avoid being an accomplice to crime, members of the public should always reject requests by others to use their Singpass credentials, bank accounts or mobile lines, as one could be held accountable if these are linked to crimes,” the police said.
Government officials will never ask people to transfer their money to bank accounts or request people’s personal, banking, Singpass or CPF-related information over the phone, they added.
The police also warned that legitimate investment companies will never ask investors to transfer money to personal bank accounts, and that investors should deal only with entities and persons who are regulated by MAS by checking its website.
According to the police’s mid-year scam and cybercrime statistics released in 2024, scam victims in Singapore lost $385.6 million in the first half of 2024.
The annual record stands at $660.7 million lost in 2022. - The Straits Times/ANN
