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Two Malaysian men, aged 30 and 20, will be charged in court on 22 and 23 March 2026 respectively for their suspected involvement in a case of Government Official Impersonation Scam (GOIS). In March 2026 alone, the Police has arrested eight Malaysians for similar cases. 

On 20 March 2026, the Police received a report from a 62-year-old victim who had received calls from unknown persons claiming to be from M1 and Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), informing her that she had an overdue bill of $350 which could not be deducted from her bank account. The conversation continued via WhatsApp, where the victim was told that there were further purchases of iPhone 17 Pro Max, Apple Watch Ultra and Apple Watch made using her accounts, which were delivered to an address in Bukit Batok. When the victim stated that she was not familiar with the address and sought to cancel the transactions, she was referred to an investigation officer purportedly from MAS. 

The purported MAS investigation officer alleged that the victim was involved in a money laundering case and instructed her to declare all her valuables. After her declaration of her valuables, which included 8.6 kilograms of gold, she was directed to deliver the gold to him for inspection to prove her innocence. She was directed to place the gold in a bag, then head to the vicinity of MAS Building where the purported MAS investigation officer would verify his identity using a codeword. Upon arrival, an unknown man approached the victim’s car, uttered the codeword, and took the bag before leaving. Sensing something amiss, the victim alighted from her car and checked with a security guard at MAS building, who confirmed that the man was not affiliated with MAS. Realising she might have been scammed, the victim then called the Police for assistance. 

Through extensive follow-up investigations by Police Operation Command Centre, Central and Woodlands Police Divisions, Anti-Scam Command and Immigration & Checkpoints Authority, an operation was mounted to establish the identities of the unknown male and his accomplices. The identities of two men were established – a 30-year-old Malaysian Chinese man who had collected the victim’s gold, as well as a 20-year-old Malaysian Chinese man who had collected the gold in the vicinity of Orchard Road. Both men were arrested in Singapore on 21 March 2026, with the 30-year-old man arrested when he attempted to leave Singapore, and the 20-year-old man was arrested in the vicinity of Woodlands through investigative probes. Fake identification passes were seized from the 30-year-old man as case exhibits.

Preliminary investigations revealed that both men had allegedly been tasked by unknown persons, believed to be part of a transnational scam syndicate, to collect valuables including cash, gold bars and jewellery from scam victims, and hand over the valuables to other unknown persons. 

The two men will be charged on 22 and 23 March 2026 with the offence of assisting 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 10 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 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, up to a maximum of 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. 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.

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 cash, jewellery or other valuables to unknown persons whose identity has not been verified. 
• Never leave money or valuables at a location to facilitate subsequent collection. 
• Never share the screen of your device or disclose login credentials to anyone you do not know.

Singapore Government officials will never: 

• Ask you to transfer money over the phone;   
• Request your banking login details;   
• Instruct you to install mobile apps from unofficial app stores; or  
• Transfer your call to the Police.

If you have any information relating to such crimes or are in doubt, please call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit information 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.