S'porean man, 20, used ChatGPT to pose as 14-year-old girl online & extort S$20,000 from another man

A 20-year-old Singaporean man turned to ChatGPT and short video content for ideas on how to run a honey trap scheme.

Posing online as a 14-year-old girl, he lured another young man into meeting up, before extorting S$20,000 from him.

The accused, Anthony Xu (transliterated from Mandarin), pleaded guilty to one count of extortion and one count of cheating.

A honey trap scheme is a type of love scam in which an individual uses a false online persona to lure a victim into a relationship, for the purpose of extortion, blackmail, or theft.

Planned to expose and humiliate him

According to Shin Min Daily News, Xu had initially targeted the man mainly to expose Lai's character and humiliate him.

He'd learnt from a female friend in mid-October 2025 that a 21-year-old man named Lai Yuhang (transliterated from Mandarin) had been persistently trying to chat her up on social media.

The pair then referenced content from Instagram short videos to plan a scheme.

Xu also used ChatGPT for help.

First, he first pretended to be a 14-year-old girl. With with his female friend's help, he built a connection with Lai and flirted with him online.

The two eventually arranged to meet at an MRT station on Oct. 21, with suggestive hints as to what would come after.

The court heard that the female friend was unaware that Xu intended to use the opportunity to extort the man.

Pretended to be the "girl's" older brother

After meeting up, Xu lied that he was the "girl's" older brother.

He threatened Lai into taking a condom out of his backpack and filmed the process, before also taking a photo of Lai's identity card.

He claimed that if Lai did not cooperate, he would alert MRT station staff and call the police.

The two then moved to the Toa Payoh area to continue talking. Xu kept threatening to bring him to the police station along the way.

Fearing for his reputation, Lai broke down in tears on the spot and begged for mercy.

Eventually, Xu extorted S$20,000 in "hush money" from him, telling him he could pay it to him over five years at S$300 a month.

Out of fear, Lai agreed, and paid Xu S$100 in the early hours of the following morning.

He made no further payments after that.

Felt guilty afterwards

The court heard that Xu later felt guilty after reflecting on what he had done.

He returned the S$100 to Lai the next day, and sent a message apologising to Lai's mother.

However, Xu was not aware that Lai had already made a police report about the incident.

Xu was arrested the following day, and was subsequently charged.

Cooperated actively with investigations and pleaded guilty early

His lawyer, speaking in mitigation on Thursday (Aug. 6), said Xu did not try to evade responsibility, reported Lianhe Zaobao.

While the offences involved were serious, the lawyer said Xu had cooperated actively with investigations and pleaded guilty early.

His lawyer also said Xu is currently studying at an Institute of Technical Education, and has the support of his family.

He stressed that before the police got involved, Xu had already taken the initiative to apologise to the victim and return the money, which showed genuine remorse, and asked the judge for a lighter sentence.

Thereafter, the judge instructed the prosecution to prepare a report to assess whether he is suitable for probation and reformative training.

The case has been adjourned to Aug. 13 for a further mention, with sentencing set for Sep. 23.

Top image via Ruth Chai/Mothership & Unsplash