SINGAPORE: Two men will be charged on Monday (Mar 21) with allegedly giving their Singpass login details and relinquishing their bank accounts to “unknown people for easy money”, the police said on Friday.
The men, aged 19 and 25, had seen advertisements on Telegram and Instagram offering them cash in exchange for their Singpass details.
“Their Singpass details were then purportedly used by scam syndicates to open bank accounts,” said the police.
“Their relinquished bank accounts, as well as the bank accounts opened by the syndicate, were all allegedly used to launder proceeds of cheating offences.”
INSTAGRAM STORY ADVERTISED ‘FAST CASH’
Investigations revealed that in early 2021, the 19-year-old man was alleged to have disclosed his Singpass login details after he responded to an Instagram story asking if anyone was interested in earning fast cash.
His details were used to access his Singpass account and open three bank accounts with Citibank and CIMB Bank, said the police.
These bank accounts were then used to launder proceeds of crime, amounting to more than S$77,000.
“In addition, he was allegedly approached by a member of a scam syndicate on Telegram to sell his bank account,” said the police.
He created a Standard Chartered Bank account and allegedly relinquished control of the account to the syndicate.
He will also be charged for allegedly relinquishing his personal United Overseas Bank account to an online gambling syndicate in exchange for cash.
TELEGRAM AD OFFERED CASH FOR SINGPASS DETAILS
Investigations showed that in August last year, the 25-year-old man saw an advertisement on Telegram offering him cash in exchange for his Singpass details.
After he handed over his Singpass login details, a syndicate was able to register a Standard Chartered Bank account in his name.
The bank account was used to launder proceeds of crime amounting to more than S$850,000, including the proceeds of a job scam.
The man also allegedly sold his OCBC Bank account for “fast cash” to a member of another syndicate who he met on Telegram in September last year.
This bank account was used to launder proceeds of crime amounting to S$55,000.
“Disclosing Singpass login details and relinquishing bank accounts to other persons can constitute offences under the Computer Misuse Act,” said the police.
“Crime syndicates may make use of the disclosed Singpass login details to access the Singpass accounts and open bank accounts, which are then used to launder the proceeds of crime.
“To avoid becoming involved in money laundering activities, members of the public should always reject requests to disclose their Singpass login details, or allow their personal bank accounts to be used to receive and transfer money for others.”
If found guilty of disclosing their Singpass login details, the men could be jailed for up to three years, fined up to S$10,000, or both, for first-time offenders.
For allegedly relinquishing control of their bank accounts, the men could be jailed for up to two years and/or fined up to S$5,000.
