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The Police have arrested two Malaysian men, aged 30 and 40, for their suspected involvement in Government Officials Impersonation Scam (GOIS) cases.

On 24 July 2026, the Police received a report involving the impersonation of a government official purportedly from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The victim was told that she had been implicated in money laundering involving her bank account. The scammer then instructed her to surrender her cash for the purposes of investigation. Following the scammer's instructions, the victim handed over $9,000 in cash to an unknown male, believing that he was an officer from the MAS. 

Separately, on 28 July 2026, the Police received another report with similar modus operandi, and the victim was deceived into handing over gold bars worth over S$20,000 and an assortment of valuables worth approximately S$10,000 to another unknown male whom she believed to be an officer from the MAS.

Through extensive ground enquiries and follow-up investigations, officers from Cyber Command, with the assistance of the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA), established the identities of the men involved. Both were arrested at Woodlands Checkpoint on 29 July 2026. 

Preliminary investigations revealed that both men had collected the cash and valuables from the victims and handed them over to unknown persons before leaving Singapore. They are suspected to be involved in several other similar cases. 

The two men will be charged in court on 30 July 2026 with the offence of assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct. If convicted, they may be sentenced to a jail term of up to 10 years, a fine of up to $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 victims.

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.

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 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. 

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