4 molest cases reported on average per day, cases in public transport high: SPF

The Mid-Year Crime Statistics from Jan to Jun 2017 released by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) today reveals that 717 Outrage of Modesty cases were registered in the first half of this year – or an average of 4 molests per day.

The SPF said that Outrage of Modesty cases are on the uptrend with 9.5% less cases (655 cases) being reported in the first half of 2016.

It particularly identified public transport as a “worrying” hotspot where such incidents occur, with 70 Outrage of Modesty cases being reported from January to June.

Besides Outrage of Modesty cases, 349 cases of internet love scams were recorded in the first half of this year, with victims losing S$22.1 million in total to scammers.

This is a stark increase from last year, where victims of a total of 277 reported cases lost S$11.2 million in the same period.

The largest sum lost in a single cheating case this year is a whopping S$6 million.

In such love scams, swindlers typically befriend the victim online and ask for money under a variety of reasons, before disappearing once the transfer is made.

The SPF asserted that a notable poption of online commercial crimes are committed remotely by foreign syndicates.