Mindef warns of bulk order scams; bakery latest to be hit

The Ministry of Defence (Mindef) has warned the public about fraudulent bulk orders made by individuals claiming to be Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) personnel.

- Vihanya Rakshika

In a Facebook post on Sept 14, Mindef said it has been made aware of seven such cases and has not found any evidence that the individuals involved are affiliated with the SAF. It said the ministry has lodged police reports regarding the matter.

"We urge the public, including businesses, to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the police," it said.

"The SAF takes a serious view of this," Mindef added.

This comes after three cases of bulk order scams were reported in a week.

In the latest case, Breaditation Bakery was affected when a man claiming to be an army officer placed a $2,000 order and disappeared without a trace, leaving the owner scrambling to sell the baked goods before they went to waste.

The Desker Road bakery, which sells sourdough bread, pastries and filled buns, took to Instagram on Sept 13 to warn its followers of the bulk order scam.

In a post at around 5.30pm that day, the bakery said the alleged scammer, named Gordon and claiming to be from Bedok Camp, had failed to collect the order.