276 people under probe over scams totalling more than $7m
A total of 276 suspects are under investigation for allegedly being scammers or money mules in cases where victims lost more than $7 million.
The 174 men and 102 women, aged between 16 and 71, are believed to be involved in more than 1,200 scams.
Their alleged involvement came to light during a two-week operation from March 29 to April 11 by the Commercial Affairs Department and seven police land divisions.
Police said that the scams being investigated include those related to jobs, investments, friend impersonation, e-commerce and internet love.
The suspects are being investigated for the alleged offences of cheating, money laundering or providing payment services without a licence.
Those found guilty of cheating can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined, while those convicted of money laundering can be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both.
Anyone convicted of providing payment services without a licence can be jailed for up to three years, fined up to $125,000, or both.
To avoid being an accomplice to crimes, members of the public should always reject requests by others to use their bank accounts or mobile phone lines, said the police.
Those found linked to such crimes will be held accountable, they warned.
Scams in Singapore hit a record high of 46,563 reported cases in 2023 – the highest number of cases since the police started tracking them in 2016.
The 2023 figure is up 46.8 per cent from the 31,728 cases in 2022, and victims lost a total of $651.8 million in 2023.
For more information on scams, the public can go to scamalert.sg or call the anti-scam helpline on 1800-722-6688.
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