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The Police will be charging a 36-year-old Malaysian man for his suspected involvement in several cases of Government Official Impersonation Scam (GOIS).

On 5 January 2026, the Police received a report from a victim who was allegedly contacted by scammers claiming that she had purchased an insurance policy and her personal information had been misused. The call was transferred to another unknown person purportedly from the “Monetary Authority of Singapore” who informed her that she was suspected to be involved in money laundering activities. The victim was subsequently directed to surrender her money and valuables for the purpose of investigations. She followed the scammers’ instructions and handed over cash amounting to more than $12,000 and an assortment of valuables to unknown persons.

Through extensive ground enquiries and follow-up investigations, officers from the Anti-Scam Command established the identity of one of the unknown persons who had collected cash and valuables from the victim and arrested him on 26 January 2026.

Prior to his arrest, the man had collected an assortment of valuables from another victim. An assortment of valuables was recovered, and mobile phones were seized as case exhibits. Preliminary investigations revealed that the man is believed to be involved in other similar cases and was facilitating the operations of the scam syndicate.

The man will be charged in court on 28 January 2026 with the offence of abetment by conspiracy to assist another to retain benefits from criminal conduct under Section 51 of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act 1992. The offence carries an imprisonment term of up to ten years, a fine not exceeding $500,000, or both.

The Police continue to observe an increasing trend of Malaysian nationals travelling to Singapore to assist scam syndicates in collecting cash, gold and valuables from scam victims. With effect from 30 December 2025, scammers and members or recruiters of scam syndicates will face mandatory caning of at least six strokes, which can go up to 24 strokes. Scam mules who enable scammers by laundering scam proceeds will face discretionary caning of up to 12 strokes. This includes certain money-laundering offences under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act; Singpass offences under the Computer Misuse Act; and certain SIM-card offences under the Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act.

Under the Facility Restriction Framework, individuals involved in mule-related offences – whether they are under investigation and assessed to be at risk, or have been warned, issued with composition sums, prosecuted, or convicted – may face restrictions on banking services and mobile line subscriptions to prevent further facilitation of scams.

The Police take a serious stance against any person who may be involved in scams, and perpetrators will be dealt with in accordance with the law. Members of the public are reminded to NEVER transfer or hand monies or valuables to unknown persons whose identity you have not verified. NEVER place monies or valuables at a physical location to facilitate subsequent collection. Do not share the screens of your devices with any unknown persons. Singapore Government officials, including those from MAS, will never ask members of the public to do the following over a phone call:

1. Transfer money;
   
   
2. Disclose banking log-in details;
   
   
3. Install mobile apps from unofficial app stores; or 
   
   
4. Transfer your call to Police.

If you have any information relating to such crimes or if you are in doubt, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness. All information will be kept strictly confidential. If you require urgent Police assistance, please dial ‘999’. For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799.

Photo of Exhibits



Photo of Arrest