Trio charged in S$800,000 gold bar scam linked to impersonation of Singapore govt official
SINGAPORE, June 6 — Three men have been charged in Singapore for allegedly laundering proceeds from a scam that involved impersonating a government official and conning a senior victim into handing over gold bars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The Straits Times reported that Ryan Ng Zee Hao, 24, Young Raven, 28, and Randolph Koh Yong Lee, 30, were charged today with assisting another individual to retain benefits from criminal conduct — a serious money laundering offence.
According to police, between May 29 and June 3, Ng and Koh allegedly received valuables from Young, including 27 gold bars weighing 100g each, valued at around S$300,000 (RM986,000).
They also reportedly handled other gold pieces worth about S$500,000 and S$21,000 in cash — all believed to be proceeds from a government official impersonation scam.
One of the victims, a 68-year-old man, was tricked into believing he was under investigation by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
He was told to surrender the gold bars for 'investigations' and handed them over to a person later identified as Young. Ng and a 29-year-old woman allegedly assisted in collecting the items.
The scam came to light when the victim filed a police report on June 3.
Officers arrested Young, Ng, and the woman the next day.
Further checks led to the arrest of Koh and another 29-year-old man at Woodlands Checkpoint as they were attempting to leave Singapore.
Police also seized S$22,000 in cash and six mobile phones.
Investigations are ongoing against the 29-year-old woman and the second man arrested at the checkpoint.
If convicted of helping to retain benefits from criminal conduct, the accused could face up to 10 years in jail, a fine of up to S$500,000, or both.
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