Think Elon Musk is a genius? Well, you’ve never met a scammer.
Many of us think that only a minority of people would be gullible enough to fall for scams, but fraudsters are getting craftier by the day.
In some scams, like this one, scammers manage to convince victims that they or someone they know has committed a crime and literally has to pay for it.
Think you’d never fall for it? Well, read on.
Teen Duped Into Making a Video of Himself Being Kidnapped; Video Used to Scam His Parents
It all started with a call from an officer from the Ministry of Health (MOH). Except that this wasn’t actually MOH, of course, but a scammer.
The victim, an 18-year-old boy, was then redirected to two other scammers claiming to be police officers from China. This wasn’t true either.
The scammers told the boy that his particulars were used to open a bank account used for money laundering activities in China, which the victim believed.
Scared, he agreed to transfer $350,000 as bail money to designated bank accounts.
But that wasn’t all.
The scammers also duped the teen into recording a video of himself with his hands behind his back, on the pretext of ‘assisting in investigations. He was told not to talk about these investigations to anyone else.
The scammers then sent the video to the victim’s parents, who lived in China, saying they had kidnapped their son, and demanded a ransom for his release.
24YO Man Believed to be Victim of Scam Involved as Well
In their investigations, the police discovered that a 24-year-old man in Singapore was involved in the scam too.
He had given the victim an envelope containing $100 in cash and a mobile phone with a SIM card so the teen could communicate with the scammers and book a room to stay in.
The man even showed a fake pass to add to the scam’s legitimacy.
It turns out that the man, too, could have been a victim of a China Officials impersonation scam.
Police Report Made, 24YO Arrested
Fortunately, the teen’s parents made a police report instead of handing over more money.
Meanwhile, the 24-year-old was arrested here for his suspected involvement in the scam even when he’s a victim.
The teen was also found to be safe and sound on 18 Nov in a rented unit.
Tips to Avoid Falling Prey to Scams
Scams are getting increasingly sophisticated, and we need to keep up.
The police provided some tips on how members of the public can avoid falling prey to such scams.
For one, if you get an unsolicited call from a number with the “+65” prefix, then you should either ignore the call or the caller’s instructions, as it’s most probably a scam call.
Always refrain from giving out personal information and bank details, whether over the phone or online. This includes passwords, OTPs, and even usernames.
Government agencies will never ask for payment through telephone calls or other social messaging platforms, which is often a ruse scam victims fall for.
If in doubt, make sure to call a friend or the police before you make any rash decisions.
You can watch these videos to know more about scams in Singapore:
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Featured Image: SPF