A woman has taken to Facebook to share how she lost $7,000 to a scam that appeared convincing at every step. In her post, Christinah Heng detailed the incident, which has since gained traction online with over 316 likes and 287 shares at the time of writing.
School needed mattresses
Christinah recounted that the incident started on a Monday when she received a call from a man who introduced himself as “Mr Lee” from Dunman High School.
Mr Lee claimed the school was renovating its library and had gotten her contact from a “friend of the principal.” He said they were looking for someone to help with the project and asked if she could meet him and the principal.
She told him she would check her schedule, and he later gave her a number to contact him. They agreed to meet on Wednesday at 3.30pm. Mr Lee also confirmed through text that the principal would be available.
On Tuesday morning, Mr Lee called again to confirm the appointment and asked if she had any mattress supplier contacts. He said the school needed 66 mattresses that cost $460 each and that the school could not place the order directly.
He explained that the principal did not have an issue with the supplier, but they needed her to act as a middle person to place the order and coordinate with the supplier.
Mr Lee gave her the contact of a “Malaysian supplier” who quoted $370 per mattress. She was told she would receive $30 per piece as commission. Believing this to be a genuine business opportunity, she decided to go along with it.
Claimed to have made payment
Mr Lee told her that the school had already transferred the money and that she should receive the payment within two hours. He kept pressuring her to pay the supplier first, saying the mattresses must be delivered by 5pm because an “inspector” was coming.
When she checked her bank account, no money had come in. Mr Lee reassured her, saying the accounts department had made the transfer and it would appear shortly.
Under pressure, she decided to transfer $7,000 to the supplier first, planning to pay the balance once she received the school’s payment. She also tried to transfer more when the “school” later said they needed an additional 150 mattresses, but her bank limited her transfer amount.
The scammers even sent her a fake screenshot showing a transfer of $73,500 to make the scheme look real.
Police report filed
When she suggested delivering the mattresses first and collecting payment on delivery, Mr Lee refused. That was when she began to feel something was wrong.
She immediately went to the bank and called Dunman High School, only to find out that there was no such renovation project and no one by the name of Mr Lee at the school.
Realising she had been scammed, she made a police report immediately.
In her post, she wrote:
“I hope what I’ve gone through will serve as a warning to others: never transfer money without confirming who the person really is.”
She also shared screenshots of the scammer’s WhatsApp messages, including a fake name card and address used to impersonate the school.
You may read her Facebook post in full text below:
Today has been a very bad day for me. This morning, I lost $7,000 to a scam — all because of desperation and greed. I was desperate because I currently don’t have any project on hand, and greedy because I thought I could earn $5,000 within just a few hours.
Here’s how it started:On Monday, I received a call from someone who introduced himself as Mr. Lee (李先生) from Dunman High School. He said the school wanted to renovate their library and that the principal had gotten my contact from a friend. He told me they would like to meet me to discuss the project. I told him I would check my schedule and get back to him. He then gave me a number to text.On Tuesday morning at 7:40 a.m., I texted him and said I could meet him and the principal on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. He replied at 10:30 a.m. confirming that the principal was available at that time.Today at 10:30 a.m., he called again to confirm the appointment. I said yes. About 10 minutes later, he called back asking if I had any lobang (contacts) for mattresses. I said I might be able to check with my supplier, but he quickly added that he already had a regular supplier. However, because the principal had an issue with that supplier, they could not deal directly — so he needed my help to place the order on behalf of the school.He said the mattresses cost $460 each and that they needed 60 pieces. The supplier, according to him, was from Malaysia, and he wanted me to coordinate the order. I contacted the Malaysian supplier, who quoted me $370 each. Mr. Lee then told me the school would pay $490 each and that I could keep $30 per piece as commission.I was so happy — I thought that since I had no project at the moment, maybe God was sending me this blessing. Then, the “school” asked for my bank account number and said they had transferred $29,400 to me. But when I checked, no money came in.I called Mr. Lee, and he said his accounts department had contacted the bank, which told them I should receive the money within two hours. Meanwhile, he kept insisting that the mattresses must be delivered by 5 p.m. because an inspector was coming to check.I told the supplier I couldn’t pay yet because I hadn’t received the payment, but Mr. Lee kept pressuring me. So I negotiated with the supplier, who said he couldn’t send out the goods without payment. Finally, I told him I could pay $7,000 first, and once the goods arrived and I received the school’s payment, I would pay the balance.When I tried to transfer the money, my bank limited me to $3,000. I then asked my husband to help me transfer another $4,000. After that, the “school” called again saying they needed another 150 pieces. They even sent me a screenshot showing a transfer of $73,500 and asked me to place another order. But again, no money appeared in my account.At that point, I became suspicious and called the supplier, suggesting that he deliver the goods to Singapore first and I would pay in full upon arrival — but he refused. Then i suddenly felt somthing is wrong when rushed to OCBC to see if they could help recall the money, i call Dunman High and found out there is no such person and the school even mentioned that they had received several call for verification and after that, I went straight to make a police report.
I hope what I’ve gone through will serve as a warning to others: never transfer money without confirming who the person really is.
If you receive calls or messages from someone claiming to represent an organisation, always verify through official channels before making any payment. Call the ScamShield Helpline @ 1799 (Available 24/7, Monday to Sunday) to check if you are unsure if something is a scam, or if you have any scam-related queries.
