Man accused of fraudulent possession of S$74,000 linked to China officials impersonation scams
Huang Hsiang-Wei, 25, who is suspected for his involvement in China officials impersonation scam arrived at the State Courts on Wednesday (Jan 17). Photo: Koh Mui Fong/TODAY
SINGAPORE — A man accused of fraudulent possession of S$74,000 had his charge upgraded on Wednesday (Jan 17), pointing to him as a runner for a perpetrator of the infamous China officials impersonation scam.
Huang Hsiang-Wei, 25, a Taiwanese, is said to have been instructed by a “boss” back home to collect the S$74,000 from three victims scammed by someone called Gao Fu Shuai, which meant the sum was the benefits of criminal conduct.
Huang’s new charge on Wednesday falls under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act, and carries a fine of up to S$500,000, or to jail of up to 10 years, or both.
Huang, who was nabbed on Jan 8, was offered bail of S$50,000. The syndicated fraud branch of the Commercial Affairs Department is carrying out further investigations on the case.
He will return to court on Jan 31.
Latest statistics show that more than S$12 million have been lost in 158 cases involving China officials impersonation scams between January and November last year. In 2016, there were 487 cases, which resulted in losses totalling S$23 million.
These scams involve a caller claiming to be a Chinese government official, such as a police investigator, immigration officer or court official, who would proceed to ask for payments over the phone to get themselves out of trouble.
In a variant of the scam, the caller might also claim to be an employee or representative of a Chinese bank or courier company, telling the victim their identity was used to send parcels containing fake passports or weapons, or to apply for overseas credit cards.
