Just earlier this month, the Singapore Police Force released a post warning those who are thinking of buying a Nintendo Switch for themselves to be careful, as scams involving the popular handheld console have been on the rise.
Well, now it looks like the alarm bells are ringing through as two Singaporean youth have been arrested for e-commerce scams involving the Nintendo Switch on Carousell.
According to Channel News Asia, the youths (aged 19 and 20) were under arrest for scamming interested buyers with a fake Nintendo Switch pre-order listing on Carousell. On the listing, the youths offered buyers a second-generation Nintendo Switch at S$649. The listing stated the console would arrive on 15 April, but they required a S$50 deposit via bank transfer first.
However, once the S$50 deposit was sent over, the two suspects would cut off all communication with the buyer.
Further investigations by the police have revealed that the pair might have committed more than 80 instances of e-commerce scams involving S$30,000. If found guilty, the 20-year-old suspect could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine.
Investigations on the younger suspect are still ongoing.
We’d like to remind everyone to exercise caution when buying anything online. If possible, do purchase your Nintendo Switch from authorised sellers, or only release the money to the seller upon delivery of the product.
The best place to get a Switch right now would be Qisahn, GameXtreme, Lazada, and Amazon. Prices are higher than the norm right now due to COVID-19, so the best thing to do is be patient and wait for restocks.
Stay safe and game on.
Germaine is a fun-sized introvert who loves nothing better than sleeping in on rainy days. She can be found reading fanfiction and manga while still waiting for her Hogwarts acceptance letter. It’ll come eventually.
Natalie
