A man in Singapore who chose to ignore police warnings against credit-for-sex scams fell victim to a scam just a few minutes later.
Such scams are currently on the rise in the country, with 533 cases reported last year — 28.7% higher than the 414 recorded in 2017.
In a police-authorized interview with The New Paper, the man, identified only as Mr. Tan, claimed that he had contacted the “lady” through WeChat after discovering her ad on Locanto.
“She claimed to be a student in Singapore and wanted to earn some money by doing part-time sex work,” he told the outlet.
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Tan, 27, decided to meet the lady in the North-East town of Hougang the next day. They were supposed to meet at an area near an ATM and AXS machine.
When Tan arrived at the site, he found two police officers distributing brochures that warn against credit-for-sex scams. He was given one.
Tan, however, ignored their advice.
Minutes later, he received a call from a man who claimed to be the lady’s “big brother,” demanding money.
Shortly, Tan found himself transferring 700 Singaporean dollars ($520) in three separate transactions. He realized that it was all a scam when the man demanded another transfer, explaining that it was for the “protection” of the lady.
“It was my first time doing something like this, and so I just made the payments through AliPay,” Tan said. “After that, I thought I was finally going to meet the lady.”
In the end, Tan reported the incident back to the police. “It was just so stupid,” he said.
Featured Images via Twitter / Singapore Police Force (Left) and Public Domain (Right)
