2 teens arrested for alleged payment card fraud involving taxi company and ride-hailing firm

Two male teenagers, both aged 17, have been arrested for their suspected involvement in payment card fraud in two separate cases involving a ride-hailing firm and a taxi company in Singapore.  

On Oct 29, the police received a report that a taxi company was unable to receive payments from some users’ accounts for the rides that they booked.

Through follow-up investigations, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department identified a 17-year-old teenager and arrested him on Nov 6.

A mobile phone and four bank cards were seized as case exhibits. Preliminary investigations revealed that the 17-year-old teenager is believed to have created several user accounts with the taxi company using debit cards with insufficient funds to book rides. 

In the second case on Nov 6, the police received information that the second 17-year-old teenager had defrauded a ride-hailing firm.

Through investigations, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department arrested him on Nov 7.

A mobile phone and two bank cards were seized as case exhibits. Preliminary investigations revealed that the 17-year-old teenager is believed to have created several user accounts with the ride-hailing firm using prepaid cards with insufficient funds to book rides. 

In both cases, the teenagers are believed to have made bookings on behalf of other passengers and charged these passengers at cheaper than market rates.

They then requested passengers to make payments for the rides amounting to more than $1,000 for the first case, and more than $1,100 in the second case, directly to their bank accounts.

The taxi company and the ride-hailing firm were unable to collect the payments from the teenagers subsequently.

Investigations are ongoing. 

If convicted, they will each face a fine of up to $5,000 and/or a jail term of up to two years.