The Police have arrested a teenager for his suspected involvement in a series of cheating cases.
Between May and August 2020, there were multiple police reports about an alleged investment scam related to several bank accounts, where victims purportedly lost more than $250,000. The victims had befriended unknown persons online, who purportedly introduced them to make investments on online trading platforms. The victims then received instructions to deposit their monies into specific bank accounts in order to make investments on the online trading platforms. After depositing their monies, the victims realised that the invested monies were lost or were unable to be withdrawn from the online trading platforms.
Through follow-up investigations, officers from Woodlands Police Division established the identity of the teenager believed to be the account holder of the specific bank accounts and arrested him on 21 July 2021. Preliminary investigations revealed that the teenager had allegedly opened and sold numerous bank accounts, with the knowledge that the bank accounts would be used for illicit gains.
The teenager will be charged in court on 23 July 2021 for 3 counts of assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct under Section 44(1)(a) of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (CDSA). The offence carries a fine not exceeding $500,000, or a jail term of up to 10 years, or both.
For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam hotline at 1800-722-6688. Anyone with information related to such scams may call the Police hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
23 July 2021 @ 8:45 AM