33-year-old man arrested for alleged scam offering high-paying chauffeur job

SINGAPORE — A 33-year-old man was arrested on Monday (Jan 17) for his suspected involvement in a series of job scams where victims made payments and bought mobile phones for jobs that never materialised.

In a statement on Monday, the police said that they had received several reports this month from victims who were allegedly cheated by a man who promised to help them secure a high-paying chauffeur job.

The victims were purportedly told to hand over cash amounting to about S$200 as part of administrative payments for the job, the police added.

The victims were also allegedly directed to buy a mobile phone, sign up for phone lines with telecommunication firms and hand over the phones to the man for their subsequent use in the promised chauffeur job.

They were supposedly informed that the money paid would be reimbursed. 

“The victims would realise that they had been scammed when they were not given any jobs, monetary reimbursement or their phones back,” the police said in their statement.

The suspect was arrested after police officers from the Clementi Police Division established his identity through follow-up investigations. 

Early investigations revealed that he is believed to be involved in other similar cases of job scam.

He will be charged on Tuesday with cheating under Section 420 of the Penal Code 1871. 

The offence carries a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine.