SINGAPORE — Three men have been charged in Singapore for allegedly laundering proceeds from a scam that involved impersonating a government official and conning a senior victim into handing over gold bars worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The Straits Times reported that Ryan Ng Zee Hao, 24, Young Raven, 28, and Randolph Koh Yong Lee, 30, were charged today with assisting another individual to retain benefits from criminal conduct — a serious money laundering offence.

According to police, between May 29 and June 3, Ng and Koh allegedly received valuables from Young, including 27 gold bars weighing 100g each, valued at around S$300,000 (RM986,000).

They also reportedly handled other gold pieces worth about S$500,000 and S$21,000 in cash — all believed to be proceeds from a government official impersonation scam.

One of the victims, a 68-year-old man, was tricked into believing he was under investigation by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.