3,018 arrested in cross-border anti-scam crackdown linked to US$752m fraud across 10 territories

SINGAPORE: A two-month transnational anti-scam operation involving law enforcement agencies from 10 territories resulted in the arrest of 3,018 people and investigations into 7,553 individuals linked to scams worth about US$752 million (S$963 million), Singapore Police Force (SPF) said on 20 May 2026.

The operation, known as Operation FRONTIER+ III, ran from 10 March to 7 May 2026 and involved more than 3,200 officers from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Hong Kong, Macau, South Korea, Brunei, the Maldives and Canada.

Authorities targeted a wide range of scams, including e-commerce fraud, investment scams, impersonation scams and job scams.

The suspects arrested during the operation were aged between 13 and 85.

Police said nearly 102,000 bank accounts linked to scam activities were frozen, while more than US$161 million in illicit funds was seized during the coordinated crackdown.

Singapore operations uncover major fraud cases

The SPF’s Anti-Scam Centre (ASC) investigated more than 1,000 individuals connected to scam cases involving losses exceeding S$69.3 million during the operation.

More than 130 people were arrested in Singapore alone. Authorities also froze 2,315 bank accounts and seized S$34.9 million.

One of the largest cases involved the chief executive officer of a Singapore-based company who received a WhatsApp call from a scammer impersonating the chairman of the firm’s headquarters.

The scammer instructed the executive to oversee an alleged acquisition project involving the transfer of US$36.3 million in company funds into two local OCBC bank accounts.

The fraud was uncovered only after the chief executive verified the transaction with the company’s actual chairman.

Following a police report, Singapore authorities seized US$9.7 million from the local accounts. However, approximately US$26.5 million had already been transferred to accounts in Hong Kong.

Singapore police sought assistance from Hong Kong authorities, leading to the seizure of more than US$11.1 million from Hong Kong bank accounts and associated cryptocurrency wallets.

Police said investigations later resulted in the arrest of two Singaporeans accused of facilitating the opening of a corporate bank account used to receive illicit funds.

Investigations remain ongoing.

Business e-mail compromise scam thwarted

In another case, a staff member at a Singapore-based commodity trading firm received an e-mail appearing to originate from one of the company’s suppliers.

The message requested the transfer of US$6.6 million to a bank account in Oman.

The fraud was discovered a day later after the actual supplier informed the company that it had not changed its banking details.

Police said the spoofed e-mail domain name had been subtly altered, making it difficult to distinguish from the legitimate address.

The SPF worked with authorities in Dubai to establish communication with Omani authorities, eventually leading to the recovery of the funds.

Three Malaysians arrested in Johor Bahru

Singapore police also worked closely with Malaysian authorities to dismantle a transnational scam syndicate linked to scam-related bank accounts.

The joint operation led to the arrest of three Malaysians in Johor Bahru.

The SPF said close information-sharing between digital bank MariBank and the ASC helped identify the Malaysia-based syndicate as the source of several scam-linked accounts.

Acting on intelligence supplied by Singapore authorities, officers from the Johor Commercial Crime Investigation Department (CCID) of the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP) raided the syndicate’s premises on 17 March 2026.

Authorities seized 83 mobile phones, 45 bank tokens and a computer containing the syndicate’s operating software.

Following the raid, officers from the SPF and RMP held a joint case conference during which Malaysian investigators disclosed further details linked to the scam accounts.

Between 23 and 31 March 2026, SPF officers conducted coordinated enforcement actions in Singapore, arresting 18 individuals accused of knowingly opening or surrendering bank accounts, or relinquishing their Singpass credentials for financial gain.

Kuala Lumpur scam centre raided

In a separate joint operation, officers from the SPF’s Commercial Affairs Department (CAD), Criminal Investigation Department (CID) and Police Intelligence Department cooperated with the RMP to target a suspected Government Official Impersonation Scam (GOIS) syndicate.

After extensive intelligence-gathering operations, investigators identified a suspected scam operations centre in Kuala Lumpur.

Officers from Malaysia’s CCID raided the premises on 7 April 2026.

During the operation, authorities seized 17 mobile phones, a computer, a router and two walkie-talkies. Three Malaysian men were arrested.

Singapore investigators later identified 22 Singapore-based victims who allegedly suffered losses exceeding S$877,000.

Police said seized devices contained fake court orders, handwritten notes and photographs allegedly linking the suspects to the fraud operation.

Regional cooperation strengthened

Director of the Commercial Affairs Department Peggy Pao said international cooperation remained critical in combating cross-border scams.

“Our ability to curb cross-border scams hinges on the depth of the relationships we build with the FRONTIER+ network,” she said.

“When agencies share real-time alerts, pool analytical resources and conduct synchronised raids, this accelerates the identification of illicit fund flows and the dismantling of scam operations.”

She added that scammers were increasingly aware “there is no jurisdiction where they can operate unchecked”.

The FRONTIER+ initiative currently comprises anti-scam representatives from 14 law enforcement agencies, including Singapore, Hong Kong SAR, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand, Australia, Canada, Brunei, Indonesia, South Africa, the Maldives, the United Arab Emirates, Macau SAR and the United States.

According to the SPF, the platform facilitates real-time intelligence sharing, joint enforcement operations and cross-border analysis aimed at dismantling international scam syndicates and disrupting illicit financial networks.