Police arrested a 23-year-old woman on Wednesday, August 15 for her suspected involvement in two ticket scams. The unnamed woman will be charged in court on Friday.
Police said on Thursday, August 16 that they were alerted to 16 scam cases between July and August. The victims of this scam reported that they purchased tickets from a woman via bank transfer for the National Day Parade and JJ Lin's concert. But, they did not receive the promised tickets after the payments. When they tried to contact the woman, they could not trace her.
After receiving several reports, officers from the Bedok Police Division started their investigation and spotted the woman, who was taken into the custody for the alleged crime on Wednesday.
If the court found the woman guilty of conducting the ticket booking scam, then she could face a jail term of up to 10 years.
Prior to this arrest, Singapore Police Force has advised people to be aware of such scams that could take place before the upcoming concerts, including performances by the South Korean boy bands WINNER and iKON.
The officials also asked people to follow a few steps to avoid such cases. These are:
- Don't be impulsive – Be wary of online advertisements of concert/show tickets at cheap prices that sound too good to be true! Do not buy on impulse. Purchase tickets only from authorised sellers as far as possible.
- Don't believe – Scammers may use a local bank account or provide a copy of an NRIC/driver's licence to make you believe that they are genuine sellers. Do not fall for it!
- Don't give – Avoid making payments or deposits in advance. Try to use shopping platforms that release your payment to the seller only upon receipt of the item. Alternatively, arrange to meet the seller and contact the authorised ticketing service provider (e.g. SISTIC, Sports Hub Tix etc.) to check the authenticity/validity of the tickets prior to making payment.
For more details on such scams, people can contact the National Crime Prevention Council's anti-scam helpline at 1800-722-6688 or also can visit the portal www.scamalert.sg.
