Telegram chat group members swindled of ‘delivery fees’ for items never delivered
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The police urged members of the public to be vigilant and to not send money to strangers.
PHOTO: AFP
SINGAPORE – When Mr Uron saw used portable air-conditioners were up for grabs in a Telegram chat group to recycle used items for free, he jumped at the opportunity to replace his own device that was damaged recently.
The 35-year-old, who works in the marine industry, was told he could collect the item at a flat in Bukit Merah last Saturday.
But when he turned up, no one answered the door, and the man who offered the air-cons in the chat group could not be contacted.
Unable to get any information on the unit’s occupants from neighbours, he left empty-handed after waiting outside the flat for about 30 minutes.
Mr Uron, who declined to give his full name, later realised he had almost fallen for a scam. Others in the chat group were not so lucky and lost money to fraudsters who demanded a delivery fee to send the items.
The chat group, “Give and Take Singapore”, has over 1,700 members as at June 8.
In response to queries from The Straits Times, the police confirmed a report has been lodged, and investigations are ongoing.
The police described this as an e-commerce scam variant where swindlers post deals – such as giving away free items – on social media or online shopping platforms to convince victims to pay a delivery fee or goodwill deposit.
“Victims realise that they were scammed when they do not receive the items,” they added.
Like Mr Uron, another victim who wanted to be known only as Mr Tan, 54, was interested in a portable air-con and opted to have it delivered to his home by 4pm on June 3 for a $10 fee.
Mr Tan, a taxi driver, has not received the air-con to date. He said he did not think anything was amiss as he has come across people giving away good-quality items in the chat group, and the air-con’s owner appeared to be local.
Mr Uron notified the chat group’s administrators of the scam, and they acted promptly to remove the scammers and their postings from the group chat.
The police urged the public to be vigilant and to not send money to strangers.
“Where possible, opt for buyer protection by using escrow payment options, such as Carousell Protection, that release payment to the seller only upon delivery,” they advised.
