In just one month, 13 Malaysians nabbed in Singapore scam crackdown as losses hit RM1.5b
SINGAPORE, Sept 22 — At least 13 Malaysians have been arrested in Singapore within a month for their suspected roles in a wave of scams that have already cost victims more than S$456 million (RM1.5 billion) in the first half of 2025, according to a report by The Straits Times (ST).
Most of the arrests were linked to government official impersonation scams, which alone saw S$126.5 million lost between January and June. Victims were typically duped into believing they were under investigation by the authorities and persuaded to hand over large sums of cash or valuables.
One of the most recent arrests involved 31-year-old Malaysian Lee Jian Cheng, who is accused of helping a scam syndicate collect cash and jewellery from victims and money mules, allegedly amassing more than S$441,000 in illicit proceeds.
Other recent arrests include a 44-year-old Malaysian detained on August 30 for allegedly trying to cash cheques worth S$180,000, and a 20-year-old held three days earlier for allegedly facilitating cheque encashments of S$200,000 involving an elderly victim.
On August 20, a 27-year-old Malaysian was arrested over job scams that tricked victims into paying to “upgrade” their YouTube accounts for higher compensation.
Five days earlier, three Malaysians aged 28 to 30 were arrested on suspicion of acting as money mules in similar impersonation scams.
Singapore police recorded nearly 20,000 scam cases in the first half of this year, with losses already exceeding the S$456 million mark.
In 2024, victims lost a record S$1.1 billion to scams — a trend authorities warn shows no sign of slowing.
