More charges filed against members of fraud syndicate believed to be involved in credit card fraud

Quek Jian Tsing, 21, and Yong Ho Ying, 24, were indicted on November 15.

According to the charges, Kwek allegedly conspired with Yong and an unidentified person to sell two iPhones, the proceeds of crime, to a mobile phone store in Marine Parade for $3,040.

Yong is said to have conspired with Kwek and an unidentified person to sell five iPhones to one store for $7,600. These iPhones were allegedly criminal property.

The cases of the Malaysian couple and the three Chinese are believed to relate to different syndicates, despite the same modus operandi.

Since November 4, at least 10 victims of e-commerce fraud have reported unauthorized transactions totaling more than US$100,000 on their credit cards for purchases of electronic products such as iPhones and chargers and jewelry in Singapore.

Police have issued a warning to retailers of expensive electronics and luxury goods, warning them of new crime trends.

The message states that the suspicious persons made contactless payments without presenting a physical card.

Retailers are advised to look out for customers who try to make multiple contactless payments, with some transactions failing, and then use a different mobile phone or card.

Police added that these suspicious customers typically do not claim tax refunds, and the transactions often involve the purchase of high-value items in one transaction.

They may also try to hide their appearance with caps and masks, and their supposed nationality may not match their accent, police added.

If the transaction fails, staff should politely offer assistance, ask about the payment method, and ask for the physical card associated with the mobile payment for verification.

If there are multiple red flags, retailers should cautiously stop the transaction and contact the police for assistance.

In the first half of 2024, the number of fraudsters reached record levelswith a loss of more than $385.6 million in 26,587 reported cases.

Those convicted of fraud may be imprisoned for up to 10 years and fined.