'Mindef personnel' targets Bedok hawker stall, laments that ordering food recently is 'so hard' when questioned by seller

A nasi padang hawker stall in Bedok was hit by an unusually realistic variant of the recent fake bulk order prank call.

The mystery caller claimed to be from the Ministry of Defence (Mindef), spoke and texted in relatively fluent English, and insisted he was a legitimate staff member when questioned if he was a scammer.

Fortunately, the hawker remained suspicious and related the matter to his son, who ended up refusing the order.

Mothership understands that the call was not legitimate.

Guards profile pic

On Sep. 16, an unknown person contacted the owner of Desa Rancapanggung Malay Cuisine.

The person used the Guards logo as his WhatsApp profile picture, claimed to be from Mindef, and said he wanted to place an urgent order for the next day.

He also spoke in accented but fluent English.

However, the hawker had heard about recent fake bulk order prank calls. Suspicious and uncertain if it was legitimate, he decided to pass the matter on to his son.

His son, Raihan, took over communications for the order.

He was contacted by a second person — "Steven".

Seemed legitimate

"Steven" said he wanted to order 70 to 80 packets of nasi padang for the next day.

Over the course of around three hours, he texted Raihan about the contents of the order, enquiring about various menu items.

He also agreed readily when asked to make a 50 per cent deposit, which made the order seem more legitimate.

WhatsApp messages viewed by Mothership showed him typing in relatively fluent English, addressing Raihan as "boss".

"Nasi sambal goreng nicer than nasi lemak?" he asked in another message.

He later increased the order to 100 packets, and requested an invoice.

Insisted he was from Mindef

Raihan responded to the request for the invoice at 4:46pm — about 10 minutes after "Steven's" message.

But "Steven" quickly changed tack, saying that his office was closed by then as it was almost 5pm.

He then asked to make payment upon delivery instead.

In response to Raihan's suggestion that he pay from his personal account first, "Steven" said it was not possible.

"As a government servant I can't PayNow you from my account [as] I will not be able to claim from my company," he claimed.

When Raihan voiced his suspicion about the matter due to the recent spate of fake orders, "Steven" doubled down on the matter.

"The recent news made [it] so hard for us to order food," he lamented.

"Yes we are from Mindef, but we are not those fake orders guys."

He even criticised other scammers, calling them "ridiculous people" and questioning what they could gain from ordering food.

But when Raihan refused to accept the delayed payment, "Steven" ended up cancelling the order.

Mothership understands the call was not legitimate.

There are no restrictions in government agencies against employees paying first and submitting a claim later.

Ongoing scams, 3 arrested

Mindef previously said it is aware of at least seven cases of fraudulent bulk orders made by individuals impersonating its staff.

On Sep. 16, the police said it had arrested three people allegedly connected to fake bulk order scams involving military personnel.

They are a 16-year-old boy, a 22-year-old woman, and a 31-year-old man.

They allegedly acted on the instructions of a scam syndicate, the police said.

Apart from military personnel, there have also been reports of scammers impersonating other government-linked organisations.

At least three eateries have been targeted by individuals claiming to be from the Singapore Chinese Girl's School (SCGS).

The school principal said it has lodged a police report.

Top image from Raihan and Google Maps