343 under probe for allegedly cheating victims out of $6.1m

The police are probing 343 alleged scammers and money mules suspected of cheating victims out of close to $6.1 million.

The suspects are believed to be involved in more than 857 cases, including Internet love, e-commerce, impersonation, investment, job and loan scams, the police said yesterday.

They comprise 236 men and 107 women, with the youngest being 14 and the oldest at 78.

Officers from the Commercial Affairs Department and seven police land divisions conducted a two-week islandwide enforcement operation from July 8 to 21.

The suspects are being investigated for alleged offences of cheating, money laundering or providing payment services without a licence. The offence of cheating carries a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine.

Those convicted of money laundering can be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both.

The offence of running a business of providing any type of payment service in Singapore without a licence carries a fine not exceeding $125,000, a jail term not exceeding three years, or both.

Last year, Singapore saw at least $633 million stolen in scams - almost 2½ times the $268.4 million lost in 2020.

The police have said that at least 90 per cent of scams here originate from overseas, with the culprits syndicated, well-resourced and technologically sophisticated.

Earlier this week, the media authorities in Singapore and Australia signed an agreement to tackle the global impact of scams, with a focus on mutual assistance in investigations relating to scam and spam calls, and SMS messages.

The agreement is also aimed at facilitating collaboration on solutions to scam and spam communications, as well as the mutual exchange of knowledge and expertise.