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A 26-year-old Malaysian man will be charged in court on 23 May 2026 for his suspected involvement in a Government Officials Impersonation Scam. This brings the total number of Malaysians arrested in Singapore since March 2026 for facilitating scam syndicates to collect cash and valuables to 27.

On 19 May 2026, the Police received a report from a 61-year-old victim stating that she had received a call from an unknown person on 13 May 2026 claiming to be from YouTrip. The caller informed the victim that her YouTrip account was involved in a money-laundering investigation and she was instructed to contact an officer purportedly from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) for further details. The victim complied and contacted the purported MAS officer for further information.

The purported MAS officer then accused the victim of her involvement in a money-laundering case linked to her YouTrip account, and instructed her to declare all her assets to show her cooperation with the investigation. He also sent her a doctored copy of her YouTrip statement of account, along with a fake Court Order and threatened her that she would be arrested if she failed to comply with his instructions. The victim complied and withdrew $45,000 in cash from her bank account. An arrangement was made for her to hand over the money on 14 May 2026 in the vicinity of Pasir Ris. Following the scammers’ instructions, she handed the money to the purported MAS officer. 

Through follow-up investigations, officers from the Anti-Scam Command established the identity of the man and arrested him on 22 May 2026. Preliminary investigations revealed that the man had been tasked by unknown individuals, believed to be members of a transnational scam syndicate, to collect the money from the victim, to collect valuables or cash from scam victims and hand it over to other unknown persons. 

The man will be charged in court on 23 May 2026 with the offence of abetment by conspiracy to assist another person 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, 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.

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.

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, visit www.scamshield.gov.sg or call the 24/7 ScamShield Helpline at 1799.

Photos of doctored documents