News Release on the Arrest of Persons Who Impersonated Government Officials

Dear Regulated Dealers

On 4 September 2025, Ministry of Law (“MinLaw”) and the Singapore Police Force (“SPF”) alerted members of the public to scammers impersonating officers from MinLaw.  We would like to share the SPF news release on 9 November 2025 regarding the arrest of persons who posed as purported officers from MinLaw and MAS to scam a victim out of more than $400,000.

WHY IT MATTERS TO YOU AND WHAT CAN YOU DO. 

The Police have observed an increasing trend of Malaysian nationals travelling to Singapore to assist scam syndicates in collecting cash, gold, and valuables from scam victims.

In this case, the victim first received a call from an individual claiming to be from a bank, who alleged that a credit card had been applied in her name. When the victim refuted this claim, the call was transferred to persons posing as MinLaw and MAS officers, who then informed her of involvement in a case of money laundering. The victim was presented with fake staff passes from both government agencies along with other supporting documents via WhatsApp to lend credibility to the deception. The victim was instructed to transfer $1 million from her bank account to her credit card and then use the credit card to purchase gold worth over $412,000 before handing over to an unknown person on the same day. The victim subsequently made a police report, which led to the successful arrest of the two men believed to be part of a transnational scam syndicate.

Singapore Government officers, including MinLaw officers, will never ask members of the public to do the following over the phone:

• Ask you to transfer money

• Ask you to disclose banking details

• Ask you to install mobile apps from unofficial app store

• Transfer your call directly to Police, except when you call 995 for life threatening emergencies

You are reminded to be vigilant for the following red flags, which could indicate that customers acting as mules or have fallen victim to scams:

• Customers making unusually large gold purchases (e.g. jewellery, luxury watches)

• Customers appearing distressed or receiving phone calls while making purchases

• Customers refusing to provide information on the reason for the purchases

• Customers appearing to be in a hurry to complete the transactions

• Customers seeking to complete transactions without due consideration of their purchases (e.g. value, design)

• Customers being reluctant or unable to produce physical credit cards

• Customers providing payment details that do not match their known customer profile

• Customers attempting to resell substantial quantities of gold

• Customers cancelling transactions when they are almost complete

• Customers requesting to split payment using multiple cards without apparent reason

If you or your staff encounter customers exhibiting the above red flags, please consider:

• Inquiring about the purpose of purchases

• Requesting physical cards when customers pay using digital wallets

• Conducting Customer Due Diligence (“CDD”) by requesting identification cards or passports

• Verifying the cardholder's name against CDD information

• Contacting your processing bank for advice on suspicious transactions

• Observing customer reactions to additional requests for any unusual behaviour

We strongly encourage you to ensure that your frontline staff are familiar with these indicators and appropriate response actions.

If you observe any suspicious behaviour, please alert your nearest Neighbourhood Police Centre. If you have information relating to such crimes or are in doubt, call the Police Hotline at 1800-255-0000, or submit it online at https://www.police.gov.sg/i-witness. For urgent assistance, dial 999. All information will be kept strictly confidential.

Your continued vigilance and cooperation are invaluable in preventing scams and protecting vulnerable members of our community.

Click hereto access the news release issued by SPF on 9 November 2025.