Singapore arrests Vietnamese woman for $3.9mln gold scam

Nguyen Thi Thu Lan, 49, was believed to be involved in at least five cases of gold investment scam where victims were cheated of more than S$5.4 million ($3.9 million), the Channel News Asia reported on Friday, citing police.

Lan was arrested on Wednesday, police said.

The case was uncovered when several victims reported that a woman approached them between January and February, saying she operates a gold brokerage company that sells the precious metal at discounted prices.

They were told to pay $189,500 to more than $2.5 million through bank transfers for the gold, but after the payments were made, the woman did not deliver.

If found guilty, Lan could be punished with 10 years in jail and some cash fines.