Singapore Police Reports 1 Victim Lost $3.8 Million (S$4.9 Million) in Scam by Impersonation of Singapore Senior Government Officials (Include President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister Indranee Rajah, Secretary to Cabinet Wong Hong Kuan) via Zoom Virtual Video Meeting Requesting for Urgent Funding Assistance Relating to Iran Straits of Hormuz & Will be Reimbursed by Singapore Government Within 15 Days, Victim Transferred $3.8 Million (S$4.9 Million) in Multiple Transactions to Corporate Bank Account
17th May 2026 | Hong Kong
Singapore police has reported 1 victim lost at least $3.8 million (S$4.9 million) in scam by impersonation of Singapore senior government officials (Include President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister Indranee Rajah & Secretary to Cabinet Wong Hong Kuan) via Zoom virtual video meeting requesting for urgent funding assistance relating to Iran Straits of Hormuz & will be reimbursed by Singapore government within 15 days. The victim subsequently transferred at least $3.8 million (S$4.9 million) in multiple transactions to a corporate bank account. Announcement (14/5/26): “The Singapore Police Force would like to alert members of the public to be vigilant against scams that involve the impersonation of senior government officials, including the Secretary to the Cabinet. An alert was put out earlier on 6 May 2026. Since then, more cases have emerged. The scammers appear to be targeting business professionals who have had prior interactions with government officials. In these cases, the scammers would impersonate senior government officials including the Secretary to the Cabinet and inform the victim to attend a virtual meeting with the President, Ministers, and other government officials. The victim would be requested to provide an email address to receive a “Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)” for the meeting. The scammers would also inform the victim to endorse the NDA and furnish a copy of their identification cards. In one such case, the victim received a WhatsApp message with Mr Wong Hong Kuan’s profile photo, informing him to attend a meeting with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. He also received an email from [email protected], purportedly sent by the Secretary to the Cabinet, requesting urgent funding assistance relating to the situation at the Straits of Hormuz. The email included what appeared to be an official government‑issued letter of guarantee bearing PM Wong’s signature, stating that the funds would be reimbursed by the Singapore Government within 15 business days. The victim was also asked to sign an NDA, which he did. The victim was subsequently invited to a Zoom video conference that appeared to involve PM Wong, as well as other local and overseas government officials. In reality, the participants had been fabricated using deepfake AI technology. Following the meeting, the victim was contacted via WhatsApp and transferred at least SGD 4.9 million through a series of transactions to a corporate bank account supplied by the scammers. The victim later felt that something was amiss and contacted the Secretary to the Cabinet on 14 May 2026, at which point he realised that he had fallen prey to a scam. In relation to earlier cases using the same modus operandi, the Police have arrested and charged three individuals on 9 May 2026 for their suspected involvement in SIM card offences.” Announcement (16/5/26): The Police have obtained footage of the Zoom video conference that was part of the scam that involved the impersonation of senior government officials mentioned in the Police News Release issued on 14 May 2026. The Zoom video conference made use of deepfake AI technology1 to fabricate images and videos of senior government officials. Modus Operandi – In this scam variant, the victim would receive a WhatsApp message from a scammer who had impersonated the Secretary to the Cabinet, informing the victim to attend a meeting with Prime Minister Lawrence Wong. The victim would then be invited to a Zoom video conference that appeared to involve PM Wong, as well as other local and overseas government officials. The Zoom video conference was fabricated, with some portions edited using deepfake AI technology. Footage Obtained from Scam Operation – The footage showed a fabricated Zoom video conference about the situation in the Straits of Hormuz. The video conference purportedly included President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister Indranee Rajah and representatives from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), along with other foreign government officials such as the Foreign Minister of Canada and the Senior Diplomatic Advisor to the President of the United Arab Emirates, as well as private sector participants such as Blackrock and the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). The victim would be introduced to the meeting as one of the private sector participants. The video conference would then proceed with a brief by the various government officials about the situation in the Straits of Hormuz and end with a deepfake video of PM Wong delivering closing remarks, which included an acknowledgement of the victim’s attendance at that video conference … … A scammer, masquerading as a lawyer, would separately contact the victim after the conclusion of the video conference and convince the victim to transfer money. The following signs of deepfake technology were observed: 1) Speech did not synchronise with speakers’ lips, indicating that inauthentic audio was layered on. This suggests that the videos of the speakers were pre-recorded and the speech was inauthentic. 2) Speech was broadcast through one account throughout the call, instead of through the call participants. This indicates that pre-recorded, inauthentic speech was layered on to videos of impersonated officials, and broadcast through one main account. 3) Distorted background and partially obscured Zoom logo that did not align with the foreground. This indicates that the videos were manipulated using AI technology.”
“ Singapore Police Reports 1 Victim Lost $3.8 Million (S$4.9 Million) in Scam by Impersonation of Singapore Senior Government Officials (Include President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister Indranee Rajah, Secretary to Cabinet Wong Hong Kuan) via Zoom Virtual Video Meeting Requesting for Urgent Funding Assistance Relating to Iran Straits of Hormuz & Will be Reimbursed by Singapore Government Within 15 Days, Victim Transferred $3.8 Million (S$4.9 Million) in Multiple Transactions to Corporate Bank Account “
![](https://www.caproasia.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/Air-Charter-Service-728x90-1.png")
Singapore Police Reports 1 Victim Lost $3.8 Million (S$4.9 Million) in Scam by Impersonation of Singapore Senior Government Officials (Include President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, Minister Indranee Rajah, Secretary to Cabinet Wong Hong Kuan) via Zoom Virtual Video Meeting Requesting for Urgent Funding Assistance Relating to Iran Straits of Hormuz & Will be Reimbursed by Singapore Government Within 15 Days, Victim Transferred $3.8 Million (S$4.9 Million) in Multiple Transactions to Corporate Bank Account
Caproasia Users
- Manage $20 million to $30 billion of assets
- Invest $3 million to $300 million
- Advise institutions, billionaires, UHNWs & HNWs
Caproasia Platforms | 11,000 Investors & Advisors
- Caproasia.com
- Caproasia Access
- Caproasia Events
- The Financial Centre | Find Services
- Membership
- Family Office Circle
- Professional Investor Circle
- Investor Relations Network
Monthly Roundtable & Networking
Family Office Programs
The 2026 Investment Day
- March - Hong Kong
- March - Singapore
- April - Hong Kong
- April - Singapore
- July - Hong Kong
- July - Singapore
- Sept- Hong Kong
- Sept - Singapore
- Oct- Hong Kong
- Nov - Singapore
- Visit: The Investment Day | Register: Click here
Caproasia Summits
- The Institutional Investor Summit
- The Investment / Alternatives Summit
- The Private Wealth Summit
- The Family Office Summit
- The CEO & Entrepreneur Summit
- The Capital Markets Summit
- The ESG / Sustainable Investment Summit
