Man arrested for alleged involvement in VTL bus ticket e-commerce scam

SINGAPORE: A man has been arrested for his suspected involvement in a series of e-commerce scams involving the sale of vaccinated travel lane (VTL) bus tickets, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said on Friday (Mar 4).

On Feb 19, police received a report from a victim who had allegedly been cheated by an online seller who had advertised the sale of VTL bus tickets.

“After the victim had made the payment amounting to S$195, the seller purportedly failed to deliver the VTL bus tickets and became uncontactable,” SPF said in a news release.

“Through follow-up investigations, officers from the Commercial Affairs Department established the identity of the man and arrested him on Mar 3, 2022.”

Preliminary investigations revealed that the 26-year-old man may have been involved in several other cheating cases, SPF added.

He will be charged in court on Mar 7 for cheating, an offence which carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison and a fine.

“The police would like to remind members of the public that VTL bus tickets can only be purchased from the appointed VTL bus ticket providers,” SPF said.

“VTL bus tickets are non-transferable.”

Both VTL bus operators earlier this week warned customers about ticket scams. 

Transtar Travel said its tickets are sold only through three platforms - its website, Shopee and Raffles Connect (Raffles Medical Group).

"The ticket price is S$15 adult and S$8 child for Singapore to Malaysia, RM20 adult and RM10 child for Malaysia to Singapore," it said. 

Causeway Link said it was aware that various VTL tickets were being sold on social media and other online platforms. 

"Please be informed that we strongly don't support these online sellers selling VTL tickets," said Causeway Link, adding that tickets are available on its website and mobile app.

Both operators said all tickets sold are non-transferable.