Thousands lose $16m to ‘fake friend’ scams in Singapore, Police reveals

The Police in Singapore has revealed that no fewer than 6,300 people lost $16 million in “fake friend” scams last year in the country.

Reports have it that such scams involve contacting victims, pretending to be someone they know, and asking for financial assistance.

Singaporean authorities had been giving warnings against the surge in scams in recent years as criminals keep coming up with fresh schemes to scam unsuspecting people.

In a statement on Tuesday, the Police noted that the scams had cost victims Sg$21.1 million ($15.7 million) in losses between January and November last year.

In a recent case, five Malaysians were extradited on Tuesday to Singapore over “fake friend” scam calls involving over $1 million in lost funds, police said in a statement.

Malaysian and Singaporean Police had reportedly raided two apartments in Malaysia’s Johor state, which borders the city-state, earlier this month in a joint operation.

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They arrested the five men between the ages of 19 and 36 over their alleged involvement in scams which target Singaporeans.

The Police informed, on Tuesday, that the men were extradited to Singapore, and will be charged for conspiracy to cheat on Wednesday.

Police are of the opinion that the syndicate are responsible for over 500 police reports and losses amounting to over Sg$1.4 million since June of last year.

The five suspects risk up to 10 years in jail and a fine if convicted of conspiracy to cheat.

The Director of the force’s Commercial Affairs Department, David Chew said: “The Singapore Police Force has been working closely with the Royal Malaysia Police to detect and cripple these transnational scam syndicates who prey on our citizens.”

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