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A 29-year-old Malaysian man will be charged in court on Monday (May 4) over his alleged role in a scam involving impersonation of government officials.<\/p>\n
Following his arrest on Saturday, the number of Malaysians caught in Singapore for allegedly helping scam syndicates to collect cash and valuables since March this year now stands at 22.<\/p>\n
The police said they received a report on April 30 from a female victim who had received a call from an unknown person claiming to be from Singtel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This woman was told her information may have been used to purchase an iPhone with a contract and that she would be liable for charges.<\/p>\n
She was then directed to contact an “investigation officer” who accused her of money laundering involving a syndicate in Cambodia, according to a news release on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Believing that she could prove her innocence if she followed their instructions, the female victim purchased a Rolex watch at Far East Plaza, worth over $108,000, and handed it over to the 29-year-old to prove her innocence.<\/p>\n
Preliminary investigations revealed that the man had been tasked by unknown individuals, believed to be members of a transnational crime syndicate, to collect the Rolex watch from the victim before bringing it back to Malaysia.<\/p>\n
The police said they arrested the Malaysian man on Saturday, after officers from the Anti-Scam Command the the Police Operations Command Centre conducted extensive ground enquiries and follow-up investigations.<\/p>\n
If found guilty of assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct, the 29-year-old Malaysian man could be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $100,000, or both.<\/p>\n
On April 28, two Malaysians, aged 27 and 34<\/a>, were charged in court for the same offence.<\/p>\n The police said they have continued to observe an increasing trend of Malaysians travelling to Singapore to assist scam syndicates in collecting cash, gold and valuables from victims.\u00a0<\/p>\n They reminded would-be perpetrators that anyone involved in scams will be dealt with in accordance with the law.\u00a0<\/p>\n Members of the public are also reminded that government officials will never ask anyone to transfer money over the phone, request bank details, transfer a call to the police, or instruct anyone to install mobile apps from unofficial app stores.\u00a0<\/p>\n If in doubt, they may call the 24\/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799.\u00a0<\/p>\n [[nid:735020]]<\/p>\n