A 34-year-old woman recently lost around $97,000 to a 30-year-old man she had met on a dating app in 2022. The Police arrested the man on Wednesday (Nov 8) after establishing his identity.
The woman had filed a report of an Internet Love Scam (ILS) case last May, where the woman reported she had lost over S$97,000 in the scam.
Officers from the SPF’s Commercial Affairs Department then carried out an investigation, which eventually led to the man’s arrest earlier this week.
“The man used a fictitious online persona and befriended the victim, who was deceived into transferring more than $97,000 to him between August 2022 and February 2023.
The man was believed to have used the money to repay his loans and daily expenses,” the Police said in a media release.
The man is scheduled to be charged in court on Nov 10 with cheating under Section 420 of the Penal Code 1871.
For this offence, he could be subject to an imprisonment term of up to 10 years and made to pay a fine.
The police have released this advisory to prevent people from being victimized by persons who carry out love scams:
- Do not receive/send money from/to people you do not know well, especially if you have not met in person
- Contact the Police immediately if you receive any message or call from someone claiming to be in trouble overseas and urgently needs you to send money, and
- Inform the Police if anyone tries to extort money from you
