The Police have arrested a 37-year-old woman for her suspected involvement in using a stolen credit card to make unauthorised retail purchases.
On 12 January 2019, the Police were informed by a victim that there were several unauthorised transactions, amounting to more than $990/-, made with his credit card. Through follow-up investigations, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department established the identity of the woman and arrested her on 28 January 2019.
Several items including a handphone and apparels, which were believed to have been purchased using the victim’s credit card, were seized as case exhibits. Preliminary investigations revealed that the woman has made at least 19 unauthorised credit card transactions in January 2019 and is also believed to have stolen another credit card belonging to the same victim.
The woman will be charged in court on 30 January 2019 with theft in dwelling and cheating under Section 380 and Section 420 of the Penal Code, Chapter 224, respectively. If convicted of theft in dwelling, she shall be punished with a jail term which may extend to 7 years, and shall also be liable to fine. If convicted of cheating, she shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 10 years, and shall be liable to a fine.
The Police would like to advise all credit/debit card holders to adopt the following measures to prevent unauthorised use of their cards:
- Opt for SMS OTP verification for purchases or charges to your credit / debit cards;
- Opt for an SMS to be sent to your handphone for any charges incurred on your credit / debit card;
- Check bank statements and alert the bank immediately should there be any discrepancies or fraudulent charges; and
- Do not give out your credit / debit card details to strangers.
The Police would also like to take this opportunity to remind merchants and sales staff to exercise vigilance and adopt correct card acceptance procedures when processing credit card transactions. They should look out for the name and security features on the card face and should contact their processing bank immediately for advice regarding if they detect anything suspicious.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
29 January 2019 @ 6:20 PM