Police from ten countries, including the Maldives, have made significant breakthroughs in combating scams and recovering stolen funds through the Frontier Plus-3 operation, with more than 3,000 arrests made and USD 752 million in losses recorded across the participating nations.

This operation was concluded with a press conference by representatives from the ten countries, where they shared details of their efforts to prevent scams, investigate cases, and recover money stolen from victims. 

Singapore's Assistant Commissioner of Police Aileen Yap said the operation, which ran from 10 March to 7 May 2026, involved the Maldives, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Macau, Brunei, Thailand, Indonesia, Korea, and Canada. More than 7,500 people were investigated on allegations of scams across the participating countries, with more than 138,000 cases examined in total. Approximately 102 accounts holding more than USD 161 million were frozen under the operation.

Singapore alone investigated more than 1,000 suspects and arrested 130 individuals linked to more than 3,000 cases. USD 54.7 million was lost in those cases, of which approximately USD 27 million was successfully recovered.

Speaking on behalf of the Hong Kong Police Commercial Crime Bureau, Fanny Com said 9,427 scam cases were recorded in Hong Kong in the first quarter of this year, accounting for 46 per cent of all crimes recorded in the city during that period. USD 236 million was lost across those cases.

Under the Frontier Plus-3 operation, 870 people were arrested in Hong Kong and 742 scam cases were investigated, with USD 69 million recovered from more than 200 accounts. Fanny noted that a growing number of elderly people are falling victim to scams and that significant efforts are being made to improve awareness among this group. She also highlighted that stolen funds are increasingly being converted into cryptocurrency or digital currency to conceal their origins.

Malaysian Police Assistant Commissioner Mayonarin Krishnan said the operation identified 57 scam syndicates in the country, resulting in 1,451 arrests and the recovery of more than USD 300,000.

Krishnan also revealed that, based on intelligence provided by Macau during the operation, a 16-year-old Chinese boy who had been trafficked for use in running scams was intercepted at Kuala Lumpur International Airport while attempting to travel to Nepal via Malaysia. He was subsequently returned to Macau. Krishnan said the incident underscored the critical importance of rapid intelligence sharing between countries in such operations.

Superintendent of Police Sangyun Park said Korean police identified a group of scam operators based in Cambodia who had been establishing emotional relationships with victims before defrauding them through fake cryptocurrency trading platforms. Scams targeting small businesses were also identified. The members of the group were subsequently tracked down and brought to Korea in a joint operation conducted by Cambodian and Korean police.

Macau police reported that the number of scam cases in the country had fallen by 35.7 per cent as a result of anti-scam efforts. However, the total amount of money lost in such cases increased by 33 per cent. Online investment scams accounted for the largest financial losses, while scams impersonating government agencies and romance scams were also identified as common methods used by fraudsters.

Macau police said their top priority remains preventing scams before they occur, and that extensive work has been carried out in cooperation with banks to recover funds in cases where victims have already been defrauded. The Macau Police Department is also working closely with Frontier Plus partner countries to share intelligence in response to evolving scam methods.

In the Maldives, the Frontier Plus-3 operation investigated more than 349 scam cases, with 41 officers from the Anti-Scam Operations Centre deployed to handle the investigations. Victims lost more than MVR 4 million across the cases.

Swift action was taken to limit further losses, with 604 accounts frozen and an additional 158 accounts frozen under court orders. Approximately MVR 1.16 million was recovered. A total of 574 suspects were interviewed, and 16 individuals, all male, were arrested.

Investment scams are on the rise in the Maldives, and scams involving the buying and selling of foreign currency have also been identified as a growing concern.