SINGAPORE - Five women and 10 men are assisting the police with investigations following a two-day enforcement operation against scammers and money mules, which concluded on Wednesday (March 27).
The police said on Saturday that the 15 suspects are believed to have been involved in 44 cases of various scams and commercial crime-related offences.
A total of $135,420 was lost in these cases, which included e-commerce scams, forgery and other cheating cases.
The suspects are being investigated for the offences of cheating or money laundering. If found guilty of cheating, they may be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.
If found guilty of money laundering, they may be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both.
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The police advised members of the public to adopt several measures to avoid falling victim to online purchase scams.
These include reading the reviews of an online seller before committing to a purchase, being wary of items advertised at prices that seem too good to be true, and avoiding making payments or giving deposits in advance to strangers.
To avoid being an accomplice to crimes, members of the public should also always reject requests by others to use their bank account or mobile lines, said the police.
This is because individuals will be held accountable if their accounts are linked to illegal transactions.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the anti-scam hotline on 1800-722-6688.
Anyone with information on scams may call the police hotline on 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.
