A 19-year-old teenager was admitted to court for registering 25 SIM cards in exchange for money, with two of those SIM cards later used in scam cases that resulted in victims losing more than S$35,000.
The accused, Muhammad Ritzwandy Mazli, pleaded guilty on December 16 to two charges of providing SIM cards registered using his personal information, with reasonable grounds to believe that they would be used for criminal offences. Another two similar charges will be considered during sentencing.
How the SIM Card Arrangement Began
Court documents showed that Ritzwandy was approached in November 2024 by two friends known as “Genji” and “Gillean”. They offered him S$120 if he registered SIM cards and handed them over to them.
Ritzwandy agreed to the offer. Between January and February 2025, he used his personal details to register the SIM cards before passing them to his friends. He later received the promised S$120 payment.
SIM Cards Used in Scam Cases
Two of the SIM cards were later used by an unidentified person to carry out scam activities. These included a fake buyer phishing scam and a UnionPay impersonation scam.
As a result of these scams, two victims suffered losses totalling S$35,603.
Judge Questions the Accused
During the hearing, District Judge Shaiffudin Saruwan questioned Ritzwandy about his actions. When asked why he agreed to register so many SIM cards, Ritzwandy said: “Back then, I was lazy to work, and my friends influenced me to do all this.”
“Easy money, right?” the judge asked.
“Yes,” Ritzwandy replied.
He also told the court, “I am sincerely sorry and I know I would not do this anymore. Plus, I would not scam anyone, because the current course I am taking right now is cyber security and I know the consequences of scamming and hacking.”
Seriousness of SIM Card-Related Offences
Judge Shaiffudin reminded Ritzwandy that the offences were committed during a period when scam-related cases were widely reported in the media.
He said that SIM cards play a critical role in enabling scammers to operate. “Without these SIM cards, the scammers will not have the facility to proceed to scam other people,” the judge stated.
The judge added that assisting in such acts was just as serious, even if the accused did not directly scam anyone.
The prosecution urged the court to call only for a reformative training suitability report, stating that probation would not be suitable due to the seriousness of scam-related offences.
Judge Shaiffudin agreed and ordered a report to assess Ritzwandy’s suitability for reformative training. Sentencing was adjourned to January.
Under the law, providing SIM cards for use in criminal offences can result in up to three years in jail, a fine of up to S$10,000, or both.
