Man cheats woman he met on dating app of over $92k
A deliveryman who pretended to be an oil and bunker trader duped a woman he met on a dating app into transferring to him more than $92,000.
Muhammad Sharul Anoor posed as “Melcolm Tan” and lied to the 34-year-old woman, claiming that she could invest in his purported shipping imports with guaranteed returns of 3.5 per cent by January 2023.
She used $50,000 of her own savings and took out loans for the remaining amount.
On July 12, the 30-year-old scammer, who repaid her $67, was sentenced to 19 months’ jail after he pleaded guilty to seven cheating charges.
Ten other charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Andre Chong said Sharul created a profile under the name Melcolm Tan on an unspecified dating platform in 2022.
The victim and Melcolm matched through the app in August that year.
On Aug 26, 2022, he told her that she could invest in his shipping imports.
The DPP said: “The accused told the victim that he would bear any losses, and that the victim would get her monies back.”
She transferred $5,000 to the scammer via PayNow that was linked to Sharul’s mobile number on the same day.
Noting that the PayNow number belonged to “Muhammad Sharul bin Anoor”, she messaged him through WhatsApp. He told her that he was Shan and employed by Melcolm.
The offender also said he would act as an intermediary between her and Melcolm. She fell for the lies and continued corresponding with Shan.
Between August 2022 and March 2023, he falsely represented to her that Melcolm needed funds for various reasons.
She was told on Sept 2, 2022, that Melcolm had lost his credit card and needed cash to pay for items, including his return flight to Singapore.
She was duped into transferring $8,000.
The following month, she transferred another $20,000 after she was told that Melcolm needed money to “close a deal” as his friends had purportedly cheated him of $340,000.
The offender used the money to pay for items such as a renovation project and a car.
From March 2023, the victim attempted to meet Melcolm and Shan on various occasions to discuss the repayment of the money. But Sharul repeatedly failed to turn up for these meetings.
Suspicious, she lodged a police report and he was arrested on Nov 8, 2023.
For each count of cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.
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