The Police have arrested a 39-year-old man for his suspected involvement in money laundering offences linked to COVID-19-related business email impersonation scam.
In mid-March 2020, the Police were alerted to a case of an overseas pharmaceutical company being defrauded of 6.636 million euros (approximately S$10.2 million) for the purchase of surgical masks and hand sanitisers. After the company transferred the monies to a local bank, the items were not delivered and the supplier became uncontactable.
Through investigations, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department established the identity of the man who had received the monies and arrested him on 25 March 2020 when he returned from overseas to Singapore. Preliminary investigations revealed that the man had acquired the monies, which were criminal proceeds, and removed part of them out of Singapore.
Investigations against the man are currently ongoing for multiple offences under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking And Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation Of Benefits) Act (“CDSA”) punishable under Section 47(6) of the CDSA which carries a fine not exceeding S$500,000 or to an imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 years or both.
At the same time, through quick intervention and close collaboration with seven banks namely UOB, OCBC, DBS, SCB, CIMB, Maybank and HSBC, the Police’s Anti-Scam Centre managed to recover more than S$6.4 million of the amount scammed. This is the biggest single recovery since the formation of the Centre. Efforts are underway to trace and recover the remaining monies. This case highlights the strong Police-Community partnership in fighting scams. The Police would like to commend the banks for their invaluable assistance in the recovery of the money.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit scamalert.sg or call the anti-scam hotline at 1800 722 6688. Anyone with information on such scams may call the Police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.
Police take a serious view of all those who take advantage of the current COVID-19 situation to perpetrate crimes. We will spare no efforts in taking all those who flout the laws to task.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
04 April 2020 @ 3:20 PM