Two Malaysian suspects caught in DBS/POSB ATM fraud

General Veers

Alfrescian (InfP)

Generous Asset

• Jan 13, 2012

• #1

Two suspects caught in DBS/POSB ATM fraud

By Vimita Mohandas/Sharon See | Posted: 13 January 2012 2102 hrs​

SINGAPORE: Police have arrested two Malaysians for possessing ATM skimming equipment.

The two men, aged 27 and 39, were arrested during an island-wide operation by officers from the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) to arrest members of a transnational ATM skimming syndicate on Thursday.

The two men, who are on social visit passes, were arrested at a hotel in Geylang.

Among the equipment seized are a customised panel with a pin-hole camera and what's known as a simulated Foreign Device Inhibitor, which is believed to have been fitted with a card skimming device.

Police are investigating whether the two men were involved in the recent spate of card skimming cases involving DBS ATMs in Bugis Street.

Meanwhile, DBS Bank said in a statement on Friday that it has paid about S$1 million in compensation to nearly 700 customers who had fallen victim to the recent ATM card skimming scam.

This is twice the initial amount it reported last week when it said it was expecting to pay S$500,000 to compensate 400 affected customers.

In the statement, the bank said it believes that almost all the affected customers have now been identified.

The bank said the unauthorised ATM withdrawals were contained to transactions in Malaysia on 4 and 5 January, and the number of reports of unauthorised withdrawals made in Malaysia has "tapered off significantly".

DBS said it has intensified checks on all its ATMs and has also started sending SMS alerts to customers who have made overseas ATM transactions above a certain amount.

It added that it will start sending SMS alerts for selective local ATM transactions next week.

DBS said its fraud prevention measures at ATMs include closed circuit TVs, flashing entry points, sculpted translucent card-slots, dynamic lock indicators and mechanisms within the card reader.

It added that the type of security measures it deploys at each ATM depends on factors such as machine type, location and response time.

The bank said it uses a different combination of security measures at different ATM locations at different times.

- CNA/ir

 

General Veers

Alfrescian (InfP)

Generous Asset

• Jan 13, 2012

• #2

2 arrested for possessing ATM skimming equipment

Published on Jan 13, 2012

Investigations are ongoing to determine the two suspects' involvement in the DBS ATM fraud incident which has now affected 696 DBS and POSB customers, with a total of about $1 million taken from their accounts, DBS said today.

By Robin Chan & Magdalen Ng

Two suspects were caught in an ATM skimming scheme that has now widened to include almost 700 customers who had $1 million stolen from DBS Bank last week.

The two Chinese Malaysians, aged 27 and 39, were arrested after a raid on a hotel in Lorong 22 Geylang, where an assortment of equipment used for ATM skimming, including a customised panel with a pin-hold camera and a simulated Fraudulent Device Inhibitor, which is believed to have been fitted with a card skimming device.

Investigations are ongoing to determine their involvement of the two subjects in the DBS ATM fraud incident which has now affected 696 DBS and POSB customers, with a total of about $1 million taken from their accounts, DBS said today.

If found guilty for the offence of possessing equipment for making a false instrument with intent to induce prejudice under Section 473B of the Penal Code, the two suspects could be jailed for up to 10 years or a fine, or with both.
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hokkien

Alfrescian (Inf)

Asset

• Jan 14, 2012

• #3

beri good ah...better sent them to jail for a long long time

 

Pervert

Alfrescian (Inf)

Asset

• Jan 14, 2012

• #4

Cut grass but still cannot rip off roots.

 

hokkien

Alfrescian (Inf)

Asset

• Jan 14, 2012

• #5

2 arested 2 on the run wonder are they still in singapore? police man wake up lo dont sleep!

 

General Veers

Alfrescian (InfP)

Generous Asset

• Jan 14, 2012

• #6

WHAT THE POLICE FOUND: Among the nondescript items such as double-sided adhesive tape, an ampere meter, a soldering iron
and a laptop computer was a long, grey-coloured panel (in extreme left of photo). -- PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE​

 

General Veers

Alfrescian (InfP)

Generous Asset

• Jan 19, 2012

• #7

DBS fraud: Duo to plead guilty to possessing ATM-skimming devices

Published on Jan 19, 2012

By Magdalene Ng

Suspects Loke Siew Fei (left) and H'ng Gaik Chin were charged in court on 14 Jan 2012 over the ATM skimming case, which saw $1 million stolen from almost 700 DBS and POSB customers. They were arrested during a raid at a hotel in Geylang. -- PHOTO: SPH

Two men charged with possession of ATM-skimming devices, Loke Siew Fai, 27 and H'ng Gaik Chin, 39, intend to plead guilty to their charges.

Bail is set for the Malaysian pair, who appeared in court for the second time on Thursday, at $300,000 per person. Also, they have been linked to a transnational skimming syndicate that is based in Malaysia, which is believed to be behind the unauthorised withdrawals from DBS accounts two weeks ago.

Some $1 million was fraudulently withdrawn from nearly 700 affected bank customers.

The case is currently adjourned for four weeks, for further investigation. The prosecution also intends to bring fresh theft charges against both accused, when investigations are complete.

 

General Veers

Alfrescian (InfP)

Generous Asset

• Feb 16, 2012

• #8

Two men face more charges in largest ATM fraud case
By Ng Lian Cheong | Posted: 16 February 2012 2054 hrs

SINGAPORE: Two suspects involved in Singapore's largest ATM fraud recently may see more charges levelled against them.

Loke Siew Fei and H'ng Gaik Chin, both Malaysians, are alleged to have defrauded DBS Bank and POSB of about S$1 million.

They are alleged to be linked to a transnational ATM skimming syndicate based in Malaysia.

The Court was told that more time was needed to carry out investigations against them.

The duo will be back in court on March 6. If convicted, they could be fined and jailed for up to 10 years.

Separately, the latest scam has also raised concerns over the security of top-up machines at MRT stations, where commuters top-up their EZ-Link cards on a daily basis.

There are some 550 of these General Ticketing Machines.

The Land Transport Authority says the machines are under 24-hour CCTV surveillance, and checks are conducted daily for any unusual activity.

A check by Channel NewsAsia showed many commuters were not too concerned about shielding their PIN numbers when doing their transactions.

- CNA/de

 

A

Alto Saotome

Alfrescian (Inf)

Asset

• Mar 7, 2012

• #9

DBS ATM skimming case: Suspects face 2nd charge

Published on Mar 7, 2012

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Loke (left) and H'ng at an earlier court appearance in January. The duo were yesterday charged under the Computer Misuse Act with accessing customer data from an ATM. -- SHIN MIN FILE PHOTO

By Magdalen Ng

A second charge has been brought against two accused men in relation to the DBS ATM skimming case.

In the latest development, Loke Siew Fei and H'ng Gaik Chin were charged under the Computer Misuse Act with accessing customer data from an ATM in Bugis, with the intent of making unauthorised withdrawals.

They were earlier charged with the possession of skimming devices, and told the court on Jan 19 that they would be pleading guilty to that charge.

H'ng, 39, allegedly planted skimming devices - a data-capturing card reader and a pinhole camera - at a DBS ATM in Bugis Village on Jan 11, between 3.21pm and 4.28pm. Loke, 27, is charged with abetting the offence.

Read the full story in Wednesday's edition of The Straits Times.
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M

Maxima

Alfrescian (Inf)

Asset

• Jun 8, 2012

• #10

Two Malaysians jailed for possessing ATM skimming equipment
By Alvina Soh | Posted: 07 June 2012 1645 hrs

SINGAPORE: Two Malaysian men were jailed six years each for possessing skimming equipment to make false ATM cards.

Twenty-seven-year-old Loke Siew Fei and 39-year-old H'Ng Gaik Chin each pleaded guilty to two counts of contravening the Computer Misuse Act and one count of possessing equipment for making a false instrument.

An additional charge of unauthorised use of computer service was also taken into consideration.

The duo were tasked to bring skimming devices into Singapore to conduct skimming activities on ATM machines.

In January, they tampered with three ATM machines - a DBS ATM at Bugis Village, and two UOB ATMs at Sims Avenue.

After installing skimming devices on the machines, they would steal data from the ATM card's magnetic strip.

A camera was also installed near the machines' key pad to record the Personal Identification Numbers (PIN) of users.

They then emailed the information to a syndicate in Malaysia, where unauthorised withdrawals would be carried out by other members.

The court heard that within an hour of them tampering with the machines, bank customers carried out more than 200 transactions involving 100 bank accounts at the affected ATM machines.

However, none of the accounts were misused and there was no actual monetary loss to customers.

Senior District Judge See Kee Oon said there was not enough evidence to link their cases to last year's ATM fraud, involving some 700 DBS and POSB customers.

They lost S$1 million in unauthorised withdrawals made by fraudsters, also believed to be Malaysians.

Loke and H'Ng were arrested in Kim Tian Hotel at Geylang Lorong 22 on January 12.

Their arrest came at a time when investigators and the public were reeling from a spate of fraudulent withdrawals involving DBS and POSB ATMs.

The duo are part of a transnational ATM skimming syndicate based in Malaysia, whose members included Eastern Europeans.

They were recruited by Chin Yew Pong in December last year.

Chin is still at large.

Loke's lawyer said that Loke was asked to take part in the scam, due to his technical experience in fixing hardware as a former computer salesman.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Christopher Ong pointed out that it was "overwhelmingly clear that Loke and H'Ng had knowingly and willingly aligned themselves with criminals of a global character".

He described their roles as "crucial" as they were involved in the initial stages of the fraud, and that their offences were carefully planned.

In his sentencing, the judge also called the duo "frontliners" of the fraud and said that a substantial custodial sentence was necessary.

He added that their offences "seriously undermined public confidence in the integrity of Singapore's financial institutions and the services that they provided to the general public".

The other persons involved in the syndicate have not been arrested.

- CNA/fa/cc

 

M

Maxima

Alfrescian (Inf)

Asset

• Jun 8, 2012

• #11

Loke Siew Fei (left) and Hng Gaik Chin came to Singapore to install ATM skimming devices to steal customer data. -- PHOTOS: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE


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