SINGAPORE: A young man, together with his three friends, deceived several pawn shops by presenting a gold-plated ring as if it were made of pure gold. The suspects tried to sell the ring at four different shops, hoping that they could get money out of it. However, a shop assistant exposed their scheme, and they were eventually arrested by the police.
One of the suspects, a 21-year-old, faces a total of eight charges, including conspiracy to cheat. Furthermore, his friends (ages 24, 22, and 21) were also taken to the authorities.
According to investigations, the case showed that another man gave the suspects two gold-plated silver rings and instructed them to pawn them at pawn shops. When the scheme becomes a success, they will then split the money.
The suspects tried to pawn the ring for at least S$1,000 at one shop, and were told to lie, stating that the ring belonged to deceased grandparents and they were pawning it because they needed the money.
In instances when the shop assistants discovered that the ring was fake, the suspects were instructed to remain ignorant, retrieve the ring, and leave the shop immediately.
In another attempt, it was revealed that when they successfully pawned the ring, the young men would have S$200 each. They went to another pawn shop, tried to pawn the two fake rings, but were unsuccessful once again.
The suspects then decided to pawn the rings at another pawn shop, but other branches had already notified their manager about the scheme. Eventually, this uncovered their illegal actions. When the manager reported the incident, the Singapore Police Force arrested the suspects.
This case comes as Singapore tightens its stance on fraud-related crimes. Individuals who are found guilty of scamming, being part of scam groups, or recruiting others can get between six and 24 cane strokes, depending on how serious their crimes are.
