一、Investigating Departments:
(一)Taiwan: Taiwan Ciaotou District Prosecutors Office, Criminal Investigation Bureau, Taipei Representative Office in the Republic of Singapore, Criminal Investigation Brigade of Kaohsiung City Police Department Criminal Investigation Corps, Nangang Precinct, Taipei City Police Department, Criminal Investigation Brigade of Pingtung County Government Police Department Criminal Investigation Corps, Criminal Investigation Brigade of Penghu County Government Police Department Criminal Investigation Corps.
(二)Singapore: Criminal Investigation Department of Singapore Police Force (CID), Commercial Affairs Department (CAD).
(三)Malaysia: The Commercial Crime Investigation Department of Royal Malaysian Police (CCID-RMP).
二、Date of Seizure: May 15, 2024 (arrested in Taiwan), June 12 ,2024(arrested in Malaysia).
三、Location of Seizure: New Taipei City, Kaohsiung City, Pingtung County, and Penghu County of Taiwan, and Penang of Malaysia.
四、Suspects Arrested:Taiwanese nationals: Tsai (male, 44 years old), Hsieh (male, 30 years old), Wu (male, 33 years old), and Chen (female, 22 years old); Malaysian nationals: CHEOH (male, 48 years old) and LAU (male, 27 years old).
五、Assets and evidence seized: Cryptocurrencies valued at approximately NTD151,755 (3,794 tokens of Tether, 5,206 tokens of Dogecoin, 1,293 tokens of TRX), backup phrases to cryptocurrency wallet, foreign currencies of various countries, mobile phones, computer equipment and other related evidence. Additionally, a court order was obtained from the Taiwan Ciaotou District Court to freeze financial accounts and real estate properties associated with the case, totaling approximately NT$43.01 million.
六、Case Summary:
(一)The Singapore Police Force received a report from Singapore public that some unknown suspects induced non-specific Singapore victims to download APK software containing remote access trojans onto their mobile phones. Subsequently, the victims discovered that the money in their online banking accounts had been completely transferred without authorization. During 2023, and the total number of victims reached 1,899 people. The total amount of financial loss was about NTD784.3 million (SGD 34.1 million).
(二)The Criminal Investigation Bureau reported and requested Taiwan Ciaotou District Prosecutors Office Head Prosecutor Chang-Xia Hsieh and Section Yue Prosecutor Zi-Chun Zhou in March 2024 to conduct the investigation on the case of suspects Tsai and others involved in fraud, offenses against computer security, and money laundering. A joint task force was established with the police from Singapore and Malaysia to conduct an extensive investigation. Taiwanese nationals Tsai ○○, Hsieh ○○, Wu ○○, and Chen ○○ were identified as primary suspects. Search warrants were issued and executed in 8 locations including New Taipei City, Kaohsiung City, and Penghu County on May 15, 2024, apprehending a total of 4 suspects including Tsai and three others.
(三)Further investigation reveals that main suspect Li commanded Tsai and others from overseas to establish the computer base of remote access Trojan malware (SpyMax type) system in Taiwan. The remote access trojan was customized and packaged for false advertising to attract potential victims. Once victims successfully downloaded the mobile Trojan, the suspects manipulated the victims' phones to transfer funds from their online banking accounts to other accounts. The amount transferred from the accounts was then converted to virtual currencies for the division of spoils.
(四)The Criminal Investigation Bureau and police departments from Singapore and Malaysia were determined to fight against crimes. They overcame various difficulties and collaborated beyond the borders to fight against technology -enabled fraud and money-laundering-related crimes. This marks the first instance of trilateral police cooperation among Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia in fighting crime. It demonstrates a strong determination of police cross-border collaboration in law enforcement and combat against crimes. The Criminal Investigation Bureau will continue to collaborate with police departments from various countries to combat transnational crime. We also take this opportunity to warn potential offenders that police forces worldwide are united in fighting crime regardless of national boundaries, and they should not harbor any false hopes of evading justice.