3 teens among 8 charged with involvement in DBS phishing scam

SINGAPORE — Six men and two women aged between 17 and 28 were charged in a district court on Friday (June 24) over their alleged involvement in a phishing scam that caused more than 60 DBS bank customers to lose over S$60,000.

In a statement, the police said these individuals — all Singaporeans, according to court documents — purportedly gave their SingPass credentials to criminals for promised monetary gains of between S$150 and S$1,500.

Some of them did not receive any monetary benefits as the recipients of their credentials turned evasive after successfully opening the bank accounts, the police added.

The eight individuals are:

• Iskandar Malik, 27

• Muhammed Farhaan Syaqir Kamis, 20

• Amani Oliveira, 25

• Muhammad Fariz Zulhelmi Rizal, 22

• Shahrul Rezal Mawi, 24

• Nur Farhanah Samsur, 18

• A 17-year-old female

• A 17-year-old male

The two 17-year-olds cannot be named as the Children and Young Persons Act bans the publication of the identities of young offenders under the age of 18.

The police said that the SingPass accounts of these individuals were allegedly used by criminals to open bank accounts to launder proceeds of crime derived from a recent spate of phishing scams involving DBS bank customers.

Three of the men — Iskandar, Fariz and Rezal — had also allegedly deleted communication records that were relevant for investigations, and were each charged with an additional offence of intentionally obstructing the course of justice.

If found guilty of relinquishing their SingPass credentials, the eight individuals could be jailed for up to three years, fined up to S$10,000, or both.

Anyone found guilty of obstructing the course justice can be jailed for up to seven years, fined, or both.