SINGAPORE: A 20-year-old woman has been arrested for allegedly cheating victims who wanted to buy tickets to Universal Studios Singapore (USS) and staycation packages at Hard Rock Hotel Sentosa.
These were sold on online marketplace Carousell at a discounted rate, said the police in a news release on Monday (Jul 17).
The police received reports between last Thursday and Sunday from victims who said they met with the suspect to make payment. The suspect promised that the tickets and packages would be delivered the next day but the victims never received them, and the seller became uncontactable.
Policed managed to identify the suspect and arrested her on Sunday.
She will be charged in court on Tuesday with cheating. If convicted, she faces up to 10 years in jail and a fine.
The authorities also reminded members of the public to take the following precautions when shopping online:
– Make purchases only from authorised sellers and take note of the terms and conditions of the sale;
– If advanced payment is required, use shopping platforms that provide arrangements to only release your payment to the seller upon your receipt of the item;
– Try to arrange for a physical meet-up with the seller to verify the authenticity of the tickets prior to making payment. Bear in mind that the party that you are dealing with online is a stranger.
Read more at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/woman-arrested-for-online-scam-involving-uss-tickets-staycation-9038958