M'sian man, 38, allegedly impersonated S'pore govt officer & made woman buy S$130,000 worth of gold which he took

A 38-year-old Malaysian man will be charged in court on Mar. 7 for his alleged involvement in a scam leading to the loss of over S$130,000.

In a press release on Mar. 6, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said that the man had facilitated a call to lure the victim to buy gold worth more than S$130,000 after claiming her involvement in a "case" of money laundering.

This also marks the second such arrest of a Malaysian in Singapore within two days for involvement in scams.

Deposited S$15,000 into victim's account, told her to buy gold

The victim received a call on Mar. 4 from a person claiming to be from HSBC and informing her there were "unauthorised transactions" on her credit card.

The call was later transferred to another person claiming to be an officer from the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD), who said the woman was involved in money laundering.

She was told to follow the caller's instructions to "prove her innocence" and "assist in the investigation".

S$15,000 was later deposited into her bank account, which she was told to withdraw and use to buy gold at local pawnbroker Maxi-Cash.

The woman ended up buying over S$130,000 worth of gold, which she was told to leave at a carpark near Upper Boon Keng Road.

She later left the area to "lure the scammer" after she placed it in her unlocked car.

The caller subsequently called her and claimed that the "scammer" had been arrested, and the gold had been moved to the car boot.

The woman was also told to go to the Police Cantonment Complex (PCC) to meet up with the investigating officer.

She quickly realised she had been scammed when no one met her at PCC, and she could not find the gold in her car boot.

Man identified and arrested

Following a police report, CAD officers identified and arrested the man near Woodlands on Mar. 6.

The man was believed to be part of a transnational scam syndicate, and allegedly hired as a mule to help collect documents, valuables or cash from scam victims and hand it over to other unknown persons.

He also allegedly used fake staff passes and documents to identify himself before collecting cash and valuables from scam victims.

Police seized fraudulent materials found in his possession, as case exhibits.

SPF also highlighted an "increasing trend" of Malaysians entering Singapore to act as money mules for scam syndicates.

Members of the public are advised to exercise caution, verify identities and avoid transferring valuables to unknown parties, as government officials will never request money transfers, banking credentials or instructions to install apps from unofficial stores.

Top photos via SPF & Canva