The Anti-Scam Command (ASCom) of the Singapore Police Force (SPF), in collaboration with the United States of America (USA) authorities have made an interception of over USD 5 million (approximately SGD 6.5 million) in a case of Business Email Compromise (BEC) Scam.
On 20 September 2024, an investment banking firm based in Singapore lodged a police report stating that it had fallen prey to a case of BEC Scam. Pursuant to the police report, the SPF swiftly engaged the USA authorities for assistance to intercept the fraudulent transfer. On 26 September 2024, the ASCom was alerted that a sum of over USD 5 million was successfully intercepted in the USA bank account. ASCom is working with the USA authorities and the victim, to recover the money.
Preliminary investigations revealed that on 19 September 2024, one of the firm’s staff received an SMS, followed by an email from the firm’s “Chief Executive Officer” (“CEO”) notifying him to transfer money to a bank account based in the USA, for some confidential acquisitions. Unbeknownst to the staff, the scammer used an email address that had the CEO’s full name and looked similar to the CEO’s actual email which used an abbreviation of his first name, “SC”. The staff then initiated several transfers amounting to about USD 6.66 million to the bank account provided by the scammer on 19 and 20 September 2024. On 20 September 2024, the staff discovered the scam after being notified by a colleague of a similar SMS and verifying the actual email address of their CEO.
The SPF remains committed to working closely with international counterparts to combat cross-border criminal activities and uphold the integrity of the global financial system. This successful interception underscores the critical importance of international cooperation in combating transnational scam cases, where perpetrators operate in a borderless environment.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
08 October 2024 @ 10:40 AM