$120k gone: Woman loses father's retirement fund after falling for scam

Believing that her identity had been stolen in a Chinese criminal case involving 6.5 billion yuan (S$1.2 billion), one woman in Singapore ended up being scammed of $120,000, including $100,000 of her father's retirement savings. 

She only discovered the missing funds about a month later.

According to Lianhe Zaobao, former Chinese-language editor You Mei Zhen (transliteration), had suffered a stroke in May last year which left half her body paralysed and unable to work. 

Sitting in a wheelchair, the 38-year-old shared in the interview how she had received a phone call through her home's landline in late April this year. The person on the other end claimed to be an employee from a bank in Shanghai.

The person also claimed that someone had used You's identity to apply for credit cards, spending about 40,000 yuan (S$7,474) to buy jade.

The bank personnel then transferred the call to a man who claimed to be a police officer in China.

He instructed You to co-operate in police investigations, emphasising that she must not reveal details of the case during the investigation period.

The man contacted You a few days later, telling her that the suspect had been apprehended and that the suspect had misappropriated about 65 billion yuan in "Covid-19 pandemic relief funds".

He added that the suspect had transferred the ill-gotten gains to fraudulent bank accounts set up using others' personal details, sharing that You was one of these "victims".

The man subsequently shared several videos with You which allegedly showed people suffering or dying as a result of being unable to obtain subsidies from the pandemic fund.

"The police officer accurately stated my name and identity card number, which is why I was convinced," You told Zaobao.

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She claimed that later on, a woman named "Lu Xi" then contacted her. Lu claimed to be the deputy director of the anti-corruption bureau and stated that the deposits in You's bank accounts had to be verified to ensure that they were not from stolen funds.

Lu instructed You to transfer all deposits from other bank accounts to her UOB bank account, so that they could "notarise" the amount at one go.

Lu also told You to download several applications so that they could perform the notarisation process remotely through her mobile phone.

"Lu told me that she was suffering from stomach cancer, which happened to be the same disease that claimed the life of my mother," said You.

"She also claimed to have a daughter who's about my age and was always caring towards me," said You, describing how the scammer had forged trust in the relationship. "I never suspected her at all," You added.

Believing Lu's words, You went behind her father's back and transferred the savings in their joint ICBC Bank account to her UOB account.

"Lu told me that they would first transfer the money out for notarisation before returning it back to the account," said You. She shared that she "didn't think much of it" at the time as she was preparing to undergo surgery for retinal detachment.

Following the operation, You wanted to withdraw a part of her savings to celebrate her father's 70th birthday. She visited a UOB bank on June 17 to update her passbook, and that was when she realised that over $120,000 had been transferred out from the account, leaving behind only about $700.

Speaking to a bank officer, she was told that the funds had been transferred on three occasions between May 26 and 29. You's father helped to lodge a police report.

"I couldn't believe that I had been scammed and didn't tell my father the truth. He didn't know that $100,000 was from his CPF savings." 

You later realised that the applications she was instructed to download as well as the conversations with the "police officer" and Lu had been erased from her phone.

A week later, however, her dad discovered the missing funds while accessing his ICBC bank account. That was when You finally told him the truth and the pair made another police report.

"The police told me that I'd been scammed and that those people did not exist. That was when the realisation hit me," said You.

'I don't think I was scammed because I was stupid'

She told Lianhe Zaobao that her father had planned to use the money in his savings account for travelling and to enjoy his retirement, but is now left feeling helpless.

"Of course he was angry but he tried to appear calm so I wouldn't feel so bad. He rationalised that the money would have been mine anyway after he's gone, so it's as though I just used it earlier," said You. 

She also shared how her dad's plans to retire had fallen through because of her stroke.

"After my stroke last year, I had to rely on my father's salary as a warehouse manager to survive. And now with such a large part of his savings gone, I feel extremely guilty." 

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She noted that the scammers had utilised novel tactics by calling her landline instead of her mobile phone. They also got her to transfer all deposits to one account as well as to download applications so they could secretly control her phone.

"I don't think I was scammed because I was stupid, it's really hard to guard against [these scammers]," she added.

You hoped that her case can serve as a warning to others to always be on the alert so they won't become the next scam victim.

When contacted by Shin Min Daily News, police confirmed that they have received a report on the case and investigations are ongoing.

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candicecai@asiaone.com