PUBLISHED ONDecember 12, 2025 2:07 AMBYSean LerTwo men, aged 24 and 47, will be charged in court on Friday (Dec 12) for their alleged involvement in a government official impersonation scam (GOIS).
In a statement on Dec 11, the police said they received a report involving the impersonation of an officer from the Singapore Police Force.
The female victim who filed the report was allegedly told over a video call, by a man dressed in police uniform, that she had purchased an insurance policy and that her personal information was misused.
The woman was also instructed to surrender her money and valuables for the purpose of investigations.
Convinced that she was under investigation, the woman handed over cash amounting to more than $7,000, and subsequently, gold worth over $53,000.
The police said that the cash and gold were handed to a different unknown person on each occasion.
They established the identities of the two individuals, a 47-year-old Malaysian man and a 24-year-old Singaporean man, through follow-up investigations and ground enquiries.
The 47-year-old suspect was arrested by officers from the Anti-Scam Command when he tried to leave Singapore on Dec 10.
Two mobile phones and a fake staff pass of an investment company were seized as case exhibits.
The 24-year-old Singaporean was arrested on Dec 11 and cash amounting to $5,000 was recovered and seized.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the two men were allegedly tasked by other unknown persons, believed to be part of a transnational scam syndicate, to collect cash and valuables from scam victims. They would then hand over the collection to the said unknown persons.
The Malaysian man had also allegedly used the fake staff pass to identify himself before collecting cash from the scam victims.
The two men will be charged in court with the offence of abetment by conspiracy to assist another to retain benefits from criminal conduct, according to the police.
If convicted, they may face a jail term of up to 10 years, a fine not exceeding $500,000 or both.
The police reminded members of the public never to transfer or hand over money or valuables to unknown individuals, or to anyone whose identity has not been verified.
Members of the public should also avoid placing money or valuables at any physical location to facilitate subsequent collection and to not share your device screens with unknown persons under any circumstances.
They also issued a stern reminder after observing an increasing trend of Malaysian nationals travelling to Singapore to assist scam syndicates in collecting cash, gold and valuables from scam victims:
"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," said the law enforcement agency.
In November, seven Malaysians were arrested and charged over their alleged involvement in GOIS.
Parliament passed several amendments to Singapore's criminal law on Tuesday (Nov 4), including one that will see scammers subjected to mandatory caning.
Under the Criminal Law (Miscellaneous Amendments) Bill, scammers and those who recruit or participate in scam syndicates face between six and 24 strokes of the cane.
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