A 23-year-old guy has been detained for his alleged role in money laundering related to an Internet love scam.
A female victim of an Internet love scam was reported to the police in early January 2020. The victim had made an online friend who purported to be a male doctor from the United States.
The doctor reportedly told the woman that he would be sending her goods since he was moving to Singapore. Soon after, the victim got phone calls from unknown persons informing her that the packages had been held in Malaysia and that she needed to pay money to have them freed.
As a result, the victim made two S$15,000 payments to the man’s local bank account.
Officers from the Commercial Affairs Department tracked down the man’s identity and arrested him on October 4, 2021, after conducting more investigations.
The man will be charged in court on 7 October 2021 with two counts of using benefits from criminal conduct under Section 47(3) of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Offences (Confiscation of Benefits) Act, Chapter 65A. The offence carries an imprisonment term of up to 10 years, a fine of up to $500,000, or both.