SINGAPORE – Four airport staff members were commended by the Singapore Police Force for their public-spiritedness, after their actions led to the arrest of a man stayed in Changi Airport for 18 days by forging boarding passes.

For almost three weeks – 18 days from Aug 21 until Sept 7 – Malaysian Raejali Buntut remained in transit by using 31 forged mobile boarding passes to enter several lounges in the three terminals.

Raejali was arrested after staff from air service provider Dnata alerted the police. He was sentenced to two weeks’ jail last Friday.

In a Facebook post on Sept 21, the Singapore Police Force noted that Raejali was nabbed thanks to the vigilance of four staff members. A commendation ceremony was held at the Airport Police Division on Tuesday (Sept 20), said the police in the post.

According to The Straits Times, a staff at the Dnata Lounge at Terminal 1 called police when she suspected Raejali’s misdeeds. He had entered that very lounge as recently as three days earlier, on Sept 3. He had also gone there on Sept 1 and on Aug 29 and Aug 24.

Commander Airport Police Division, Assistant Commissioner of Police (AC) Cheong Chee Ming, commended the staff for assisting in the arrest.

He said, “This case illustrates the close partnership between the Police and the airport community in fighting crime. While the Police conduct regular patrols and security checks, members of the public also play an important role in keeping our airport safe and secure. We thank these staff for being vigilant and assisting the Police to arrest the man.”

candicec@sph.com.sg

SINGAPORE – Yet another type of scam has surfaced in Singapore, after a woman lost $80,000 to scammers pretending to be police officers.

The 41-year-old victim received a call from a stranger claiming to be a police officer, who then accused her of being involved in money laundering.

She was then asked to key in her personal and internet banking details on a website that looked similar to the Singapore Police Force (SPF) website, in particular the “E-Services” page. She was told that the details were needed for investigations.

The victim only discovered later that her internet banking account was accessed illegally and multiple unauthorised transactions were made, resulting in a loss of over $80,000, the police revealed in a statement on Wednesday (Sept 21).

The police clarified that their official website is www.police.gov.sg.

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Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

www.scamalert.sg

The latest case represents a new variation of scams where the perpetrators impersonate the authorities.

Previously, some people had reported receiving missed calls starting with the numbers ‘999’ on their mobile phones. When they returned the calls, they would be connected to the police emergency hotline instead.

Another variation involves victims receiving calls from scammers claiming to be authorities from China, who demand that they make a payment through remittance of money.

The authorities urged Singaporeans to take precautions when receiving unsolicited calls, especially from unknown parties.

Members of the public are advised to ignore such calls, ignore any instructions to remit or transfer money, and refrain from divulging personal information and bank details online or over the phone.

Anyone with information can all the police hotline at 1800-225-000 or submit it online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.

seanyap@sph.com.sg