Fake MAS officer told woman she was linked to a criminal case, convinced her to hand over $20k in jewellery

A 29-year-old Vietnamese man will be charged in court on Friday (Sept 4) for his alleged involvement in a government official impersonation scam.

Police said in a news release on Thursday night that they received a report from a female victim on Aug 28.

According to the victim, she was contacted by an unknown person claiming to an "officer" from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

This, after she received an earlier unsolicited call from a person claiming to be from YouTrip.

In that call, the victim was provided with a purported insurance policy bearing her name and NRIC number. Believing the claim to be true, the victim requested to cancel it.

The "MAS officer" then falsely informed her that her personal particulars had been misused and that she was implicated in a criminal case.

Jewellery for 'forensic examination'

She was then instructed to surrender an assortment of jewellery for "forensic examination".

Again, believing this to be true, the woman handed over jewellery worth about $20,000 to the Vietnamese man.

The 29-year-old was identified by officers from the police's Cyber Command and was arrested with the assistance of Immigration and Checkpoints Authority officers on Wednesday. 

Police said their preliminary investigations revealed that the man was allegedly tasked by unknown persons, believed to be members of a transnational scam syndicate, to collect cash and valuables from scam victims before handing them over to other unknown persons.

He will be charged with the offence of assisting another to retain benefits from criminal conduct.

If found guilty of the said offence, the Vietnamese man could be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both.

Members of the public are reminded that government officials will never ask any person to transfer money or valuables over the phone, disclose banking log-in details. 

They will also not instruct anyone to install mobile applications from unauthorised app stores, or transfer calls to the police, or any other government officials.

[[nid:744211]]

editor@asiaone.com