The Police have arrested a 47-year-old man for his suspected involvement in a case of fixed deposit scam.
On 11 November 2021, the Police received a report from a victim who was purportedly scammed after he responded to an unsolicited text message, with a spoofed header of a local bank, promoting a fixed deposit scheme which promised high returns. The victim then called the number on the SMS and spoke to an unknown man who claimed that he was working for a local bank. The victim subsequently transferred a sum of $100,000 to a bank account provided by the unknown man. After transferring the money, the victim felt that something was amiss and reported the matter to his bank and the Police.
Through investigations and close collaboration with the victim’s bank, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department and Tanglin Police Division established the identity of the 47-year-old man who is suspected to be a money mule for the case, and arrested him on 17 November 2021. Preliminary investigations revealed that the man is believed to have withdrawn more than $5,900 from the bank account that the victim had transferred the money to, which was believed to be controlled by the scammer; the man had later assisted to deposit the money to several unknown bank accounts. A mobile phone and some apparel were seized as case exhibits.
The man will be charged in court on 19 November 2021 with the following offences:
- Assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct under Section 44(1)(a) of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Offences (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (“CDSA”). The offence is punishable with imprisonment term of up to 10 years, a fine of up to $500,000, or both.
- Abetment by conspiracy to commit unauthorised access to computer material under Section 3(1) read with Section 10 and Section 11A of the Computer Misuse Act, Chapter 50A. The offence carries a jail term not exceeding two years, a fine not exceeding $5,000, or both.
Members of the public who wish to place their money in fixed deposit accounts should do so through an authorised finance company or bank and are also advised to adopt the following crime prevention measures:
- Be wary of unsolicited advertisements and text messages, especially those related to deals that seem too good to be true;
- Be wary of fake SMSes with spoofed headers and check for grammatical errors in the message;
- Always verify the authenticity of the information with the official website or sources; and
- Never disclose your personal or Internet banking details and OTPs to anyone.
The Police take a serious view of any person who is involved in committing or facilitating scam cases, and perpetrators will be dealt with sternly in accordance with the law.
If you have information related to such crimes or if you are in doubt, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. Please dial ‘999’ if you require urgent Police assistance.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam Hotline at 1800-722-6688. Join the ‘Spot the Signs. Stop the Crimes’ campaign at www.scamalert.sg/fight by signing up as an advocate to receive up-to-date messages and share them with your family and friends. Together, we can help stop scams and prevent our loved ones from becoming the next victim.
Image of Scam Text Message
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
18 November 2021 @ 9:20 PM