\n<\/p>\n
Alone and afraid of being sent to jail, an elderly man fell victim to a government official impersonation scam and almost lost $17,000 of his savings.<\/p>\n
But he got the money back with the police’s help and also MP and Home Affairs Minister K Shangmugam.<\/p>\n
The 70-year-old man, surnamed Goh, received a call on Dec 8 last year from someone claiming to be a Harvey Norman employee who told him that he was accused of money laundering.<\/p>\n
Speaking to AsiaOne, Goh recalled that the “employee” asked him to make payment for an 80-inch television he had ordered.<\/p>\n
After insisting that he never made such a purchase, the employee told him that he was likely involved in money laundering activities, and that he would be referred to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).<\/p>\n
Goh subsequently received calls from two people who claimed to be MAS officials.<\/p>\n
He said that the scammers sounded <\/strong>like locals and seemed professional while speaking to him, which made him more inclined to believe them.<\/p>\n The scammers informed him that they would need access to his bank account for investigations.<\/p>\n Goh gave access to his account, afraid that he would be fined or sent to jail if convicted of money laundering.<\/p>\n The phone call lasted around two to three hours, with $17,000 transferred to a UOB bank account, explained by the scammers as “protection money” that would be saved in that account.\u00a0<\/p>\n Goh was not entirely convinced, and said that he recorded the UOB bank account number “in case (he) needed to make a complaint”. \u00a0<\/p>\n Goh went to the police after ending the call.<\/p>\n “It didn’t seem right that MAS officials would ask me to transfer money, so I rushed to file a police report,” he said, adding that he also contacted the bank to freeze his account.<\/p>\n “I felt very anxious. Handing over a sum of $17,000 is a lot, and it took hard work to earn that money,” he said.<\/p>\n Goh said that he had not been given any updates for about a month after filing the police report, which prompted him to attend a Meet-the-People (MPS) session with Shanmugam.<\/p>\n The victim raised the incident in the hope of speeding up the investigation process.<\/p>\n “Soon after, the Anti-Scam Centre contacted me and said the case was being processed,” Goh said, adding that the police also informed him that there was a chance to recover the funds.\u00a0<\/p>\n Several weeks later, the money was returned to Goh’s account.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Looking back, Goh said that he should not have fallen for such tactics, having read about previous scams reported.<\/p>\n “They were very clever. I thought I’d be able to handle scammers, but even I got fooled,” he said.<\/p>\n Goh cautioned those in similar situation to put down the phone immediately once asked to transfer money, as continuing the conversation would increase one’s chances of falling victim.<\/p>\n He also advised others to block such phone numbers to prevent repeated calls.<\/p>\n Goh said: “I think I was a bit foolish. I should have just hung up immediately and not listened to (the scammer) anymore.”\u00a0<\/p>\n He met with Shanmugam again to convey his appreciation, in a video uploaded to Shanmugam’s Facebook page on Saturday (June 13).<\/p>\n The video, which includes a handwritten letter from Goh, has since garnered over 110,000 views.<\/p>\n “Mr Goh was fortunate. Many others are not,” Shanmugam said, reminding members of the public to stay vigilant against scams.<\/p>\nPolice report filed, bank account frozen<\/h2>\n
‘Even I got fooled’<\/span><\/h2>\n