Man scammed of over $400 after Shopee seller invites him to Telegram group chat for 'cheaper deal'
Seah Jun De
TNP
Apr 7, 2025
A 47-year-old man was invited by a Shopee seller to a Telegram group chat to buy a drone at a discounted price but ended up losing more than $400 in the scam.
Mr Chen told Shin Min Daily News he was looking to buy a drone, but the $700 in-store price tag was over his budget, so he sought cheaper options online.
On March 25, he found a seller on the online shopping platform Shopee, who was selling a model for about $490 - more than $100 cheaper than the price listed on the drone's official website.
After contacting the seller to confirm the details, he was told that the price could be further discounted through a group order.
Mr Chen was then invited to join a Telegram group chat with two other buyers, whom he privately messaged and asked if they had dealt with the seller before. The two other buyers confirmed that they had previously purchased from the seller.
After paying for a drone through PayNow, the seller promised to deliver the goods to Mr Chen's address within five days.
However, Mr Chen did not receive the item after the stipulated deadline and when he contacted the seller, he was met with all sorts of excuses.
Mr Chen eventually realised that he could have fallen victim to a scam and tried contacting the other two buyers, only to find out that they had deleted all chat records with him on Telegram.
"This is an elaborate and well-thought-out scam. I believe the two so-called buyers are accomplices," he said, adding that he filed a police report and complained to Shopee after the seller started to ghost him.
Following Mr Chen's complaint, Shopee has since removed the seller's page.
