3-8-2024 (SINGAPORE) In a remarkable display of cross-border cooperation, more than US$40 million (approximately S$53 million) has been successfully recovered following a complex business email compromise scam. The operation, hailed as the “largest recovery” of its kind, was the result of a coordinated effort between Singapore’s Anti-Scam Centre, Timor-Leste authorities, and Ianterpol.
The Singapore Police Force (SPF) revealed on Saturday that the intricate fraud began to unravel on 15 July when an employee of a Singapore-based commodity firm received what appeared to be a routine email from a supplier. The message requested a transfer of funds to a new bank account in Timor-Leste. Unbeknownst to the staff member, the scammers had craftily altered the supplier’s email address, replacing an “i” with an “l” – a subtle change that went unnoticed.
Acting on the fraudulent instructions, the employee transferred a staggering US$42.3 million to the bogus account on 19 July. The deception only came to light when the genuine supplier informed the company that no payment had been received. A police report was promptly filed on 23 July, setting in motion a rapid international response.
The Anti-Scam Centre sprang into action, collaborating with Timor-Leste authorities and Interpol. By 24 July, a sum of US$39 million was detected and frozen in a Timor-Leste bank account. The following day brought further success, with Timor-Leste officials reporting the recovery of an additional US$2 million and the arrest of several suspects.
In total, seven individuals were apprehended by a coalition of Timor-Leste law enforcement agencies, including the Scientific Police Criminal Investigation, National Intelligence Services, and Financial Intelligence Unit. Efforts are now underway to repatriate the recovered funds to the victim in Singapore.
David Chew, director of SPF’s Commercial Affairs Department, emphasised the global nature of such scams and the necessity for an equally global law enforcement response. “When money flees across our borders, law enforcement must be able to not just sense-make but also have the available legal and international systems in place to speedily follow and seize it,” Chew stated.
He particularly commended the swift action of Interpol’s Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre (IFCACC), which played a crucial role in the rapid interception of the funds. Chew also expressed gratitude to the Timor-Leste authorities for their steadfast support in combating transnational crime syndicates.
