Director of design firm loses $7,000 to bulk order scam after call from 'school'

A woman who thought she could earn $5,000 in commission within hours ended up losing $7,000 to a bulk order scam.

- Zaihan Mohamed Yusof

All Ms Christina Heng, a director of an interior design company, had to do was to transfer a $7,000 deposit to a “Malaysian supplier” for 60 mattresses. She was supposedly paying this deposit on behalf of “Dunman High School”.

A man claiming to be from the school had contacted her by phone, seemingly for renovation works in the school. The man, a “Mr Lee”, subsequently asked her to order the mattresses, which cost about $30,000, for the school.

After eventually paying the deposit via bank transfer, she waited for the school to transfer the $30,000 to her bank account. But this never happened.

By the time she realised it was a scam, there was no way for her to get back the $7,000 deposit she had paid to the “Malaysian supplier”, who was part of the scam.

Ms Heng, 53, posted about her experience on Facebook on Oct 15.

On Oct 16, she told The Straits Times: “I thought it was a blessing because, in the last two months, I did not have any projects to work on. My commission was supposed to be $5,000 for the purchase of the mattresses.”

She said the “school” had asked for her bank account and said it had transferred $29,400 to her. But the money transfer - for the 60 mattresses at $490 each — was a ploy because no fund transfer was made to her bank account.

Ms Heng was first contacted by Mr Lee on Oct 13.

While arrangements were being made for a “meeting” on Oct 15 with the school principal to discuss the project, Mr Lee asked Ms Heng if she had contacts for mattresses.