Singaporean loses S$16,000 in "Scratch & Win" scam in Johor
By Hu Jielan, Sharon See | Posted: 26 November 2012 2143 hrs
Mdm Chu with one of the scammers in the CCTV footage from the bank where she withdrew her cash.
SINGAPORE: Another Singaporean has fallen prey to a "Scratch and Win" scam in Johor Bahru.
Speaking to Channel NewsAsia, the victim said she lost some 40,000 Malaysian Ringgit (S$16,000).
It is believed to be one of the highest amounts involved in the last two years.
68-year-old Mdm Chua has heard of such scams before, but she did not think she would be a victim of one.
She went to Johor Bahru alone last Wednesday and met a man and woman who claimed to be in charge of lucky draws at Sheng Siong supermarket.
They told her that she had won some electronic products, but she had to pay a sum of money to claim those prizes.
She then went to a bank teller to withdraw the money to pay them.
Mdm Chua managed to get a copy of the CCTV footage from the bank where she withdrew her cash.
One of the scammers' faces can be clearly seen in the footage, and Mdm Chua's family hopes this would aid the police in their investigations.
Police said there were 65 cases of such "Scratch and Win" scams in the first six months of the year -- six times more than the same period last year.
Mdm Chua said: "Those are my life savings.
"They said they're from Sheng Siong, so I thought I could trust them. Sheng Siong is in many places, so I wasn't worried."
Sheng Siong Group responded by saying that it does not have any branch in Malaysia and did not have any lucky draws in Malaysia.
- CNA/lp
