US$40 million linked to email scam recovered by Singapore, Timor-Leste authorities and Interpol

SINGAPORE: More than US$40 million (S$53 million) have been recovered from a business email compromise scam in a multi-agency, cross-border effort.

Singapore’s Anti-Scam Centre, together with Timor-Leste authorities and Interpol made the “largest recovery” in a case of business email compromise scam, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said on Saturday (Aug 3). 

On Jul 15, a staff member of a commodity firm based in Singapore received an email from a “supplier” notifying him to transfer the payment for some goods to a new bank account based in Timor-Leste.

The employee did not realise that the “i” in the supplier’s original email was replaced with a “l” and on Jul 19, transferred a sum of US$42.3 million to the purported supplier.

The funds were directed to the fraudulent bank account maintained in Timor-Leste.

The staff member only discovered the scam after being informed by the genuine supplier that it had not received the payment.

A police report was lodged on Jul 23.

Following the police report, SPF engaged the Timor-Leste authorities and Interpol.

The Anti-Scam Centre was alerted on Jul 24 that a sum of US$39 million was detected and frozen in a bank account maintained in Timor-Leste.

On Jul 25, Timor-Leste authorities informed that more than US$2 million was recovered after several people were arrested.

A total of seven suspects were arrested by the Scientific Police Criminal Investigation, National Intelligence Services, Financial Intelligence Unit and other law enforcement agencies of Timor-Leste, said SPF.

Steps are being taken for the return of the stolen funds to the victim in Singapore, it added.

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