6 men allegedly linked to malware cases charged with handling other people’s ill-gotten gains

SINGAPORE – Six men said to be linked to a recent spate of banking-related malware cases were on Friday each handed one charge of handling the benefits of other people’s criminal conduct.

They are also believed to be involved in a money-laundering syndicate.

One of the men, Ernest Yeo Wei Jie, 30, is said to have given instructions to three others – Muhammad Khair Farish Khalid, Jordan Cheah Jie En and Muhammad Nur Danial Jamaludin – to withdraw cash from automated teller machines (ATMs).

The trio allegedly withdrew between $2,000 and $9,000 each.

After that, Khair, 20, Cheah, 21, and Nur, 28, allegedly handed the monies to Yeo in July and August.

On or around Sept 11, Yeo, who used to own a company called Retail Paradise, allegedly took instructions from a person known only as “DY” and withdrew $13,800 from an ATM before handing the amount to an unidentified person.

A fifth man, Gabriel Kok Khen Foon, 36, is accused of taking instructions from one “Zach” to withdraw $18,000 from an ATM before taking the monies to Thailand.

Kok, who is a director and shareholder at Mobile Efficient, a firm that deals with telecommunications equipment, is accused of committing the offence in or around June.

A sixth man, Eddie Chang Yong Seng, 23, is accused of committing a similar offence on or around July 29.

He is said to have taken instructions from one “Mr B” to withdraw $10,000 from an ATM before handing the money to an unidentified person.

The cases involving all six men have been adjourned to October.

On Thursday evening, the police said the Singaporeans were among 12 men who were earlier arrested because of their suspected involvement in malware cases.

Malware is a type of malicious software that cyber criminals use to infect their victims’ devices, such as computers, to perform unlawful activities.

Confidential data such as log-in credentials can then be stolen.

The police said that between June and August, officers received multiple reports involving unauthorised transactions from victims’ bank accounts.

The victims had not divulged their one-time passwords to anyone.

The 12 men were arrested after officers conducted an enforcement operation at multiple locations islandwide on Wednesday and Thursday.

Officers then seized more than $13,000 in cash, 32 bank cards, 23 mobile devices and other items. Sixty bank accounts were also frozen to prevent further misuse.

On Sept 20, The Straits Times reported that more than 750 scam victims lost at least $10 million in total in the first half of 2023 because of unauthorised banking transactions performed using malware.

These victims had earlier contacted purported sellers of items, including food, which were advertised on social media platforms.

In unrelated cases, Kok is also accused of other offences, including drink driving and assaulting a police officer.

He allegedly had at least 82 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath when he drove a car along Middle Road shortly before 2.40am on Oct 31, 2022.

This was more than double the prescribed limit of 35mcg of alcohol in the same amount of breath.

Kok allegedly failed to keep proper control of the vehicle that morning, and mounted a kerb.

He is also accused of headbutting a policeman at around 3am that day.

Separately, Cheah, who faces 16 charges in all, is accused of other unrelated offences, including multiple drug-related ones.

He is accused of consuming methamphetamine on or before Oct 4, 2022.

Cheah was in a Buangkok Crescent flat that day when he allegedly had drugs such as ketamine and cocaine in his possession.