The Police have arrested four youths, aged between 15 and 20, for their suspected involvement in a series of sexual services scam.
Between 12 and 15 July 2020, the Police received several reports from victims who were purportedly duped into making payments after responding to online advertisements offering sexual services posted on Locanto. After the payments were made, the scammer became uncontactable.
Through investigations, officers from Jurong Police Division established the identities of the suspects and arrested them on 11 August 2020 and 12 August 2020.
Police investigations are ongoing. The offence of cheating is punishable under Section 420 of the Penal Code and carries a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine.
Members of the public are advised to adopt the following crime prevention measures:
- Be wary of friend requests or online listings offering escorts, massage or sexual services as they may be fraudulent in nature.
- Scammers may employ scare tactics to threaten victims into making more payments. Remain calm and do not accede to their requests.
- Do not give out your personal details such as your credit card information freely.
- Note that scammers may use a local bank account to enhance credibility; however, the owner of the account may not be the person communicating with you online.
If you wish to provide any information relating to such cases, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness. If you require urgent Police assistance, please dial ‘999’.
You may also call the anti-scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 or visit www.scamalert.sg to seek scam-related advice. Join the ‘Let’s fight scams’ campaign at www.scamalert.sg/fight by signing up as an advocate to receive up-to-date messages and share them with your family and friends. Together, we can help stop scams and prevent our loved ones from becoming the next scam victim.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
13 August 2020 @ 9:10 AM