Man arrested after cheating victim of $190 by pretending to be known acquaintance

A 37-year-old man was arrested for allegedly scamming a series of victims by pretending to be someone else.

The police said in a statement that they received a report on Jan 28 from a victim who had purportedly been cheated by an online acquaintance made over a social media platform.

The scammer had allegedly used a display picture of another acquaintance known to the victim in order to borrow $190 from them.

Officers established the identity of the man and arrested him on Feb 20.

Preliminary investigations revealed that he is believed to be involved in three other similar cases of scam islandwide.

Police investigations against the man are ongoing.

The offence of cheating carries a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine.

The police advise members of the public to take the following precautions when engaging online services:

• If the price is too good to be true, it probably is. Only engage service providers from reputable sources.

• Whenever possible, avoid making advance payments or direct bank transfers to the service providers.

• Scammers may entice buyers to make deposits before the services are provided, and they may also use a local bank account or provide a copy of a NRIC/driver’s licence to make you believe that they are genuine sellers. Do not fall for it.

For more information on scams, members of the public can visit www.scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam Hotline at 1800-722-6688.

Anyone with information related to such scams may call the police hotline at 1800-255-0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness