Gone in 6 months: Woman, 34, loses about $100k after falling for love scam

She expressed her love in kindness by paying off his 'debts' - but did he have any to begin with?

A woman became the victim of a love scam and lost about $97,000 to a man who has since been arrested, according to a press release by the police on Friday (Nov 10).

The 34-year-old woman had met a man, 30, through an online dating application last year, reported Shin Min. 

Utilising a fake identity, the man had cosied up to the victim, convincing her to transfer money to him in multiple occasions between August 2022 and February 2023, resulting in a total sum of over $97,000 transferred.

The woman had been told that the money would go towards repaying his debts and covering daily expenses, the police shared.

It was only in May this year that the police received a report of this online scam.

After an investigation, the police's Commercial Affairs Department which deals with white-collar crime in Singapore managed to identify the man, arresting him earlier this Wednesday on suspicion of cheating, Shin Min Daily News reported.

He will be charged in court on Friday. According to section 420 of the penal code, those found guilty of cheating can be jailed for up to 10 years and are also liable to a fine.

The police also reminds the public not to accept or transfer money to people they aren't familiar with as a precautionary measure to avoiding love scams.

Should someone contact you claiming to be in trouble overseas and in need of an urgent cash transfer or attempts to extort you for money, you should contact the police immediately, the police stated.

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khooyihang@asiaone.com