Foreign talent's contributions to Singapore

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#87

22 months' jail for man who entered ex-girlfriend's flat using duplicated keys, stole cash and jewellery​

Dominic Low

Aug 3, 2021

SINGAPORE - A 27-year-old man used a set of keys he had duplicated to enter his former girlfriend's flat on various occasions, stealing cash and jewellery.
After the locks to the flat were changed, he deceived a locksmith into helping him access the unit.
Moreno Nino Jusner Jashua Taguibao, a Filipino, was sentenced to 22 months' jail on Tuesday (Aug 3). He pleaded guilty to one charge each relating to forgery and housebreaking.
Two other charges involving housebreaking were taken into consideration during sentencing by District Judge Janet Wang.
In 2018, Taguibao moved in with his then girlfriend and was given a set of keys to her flat in a Housing Board block.
Court documents said she was unaware that he duplicated the keys, but did not specify when he did so.

When the couple broke up in September 2019, Taguibao returned the original set of keys but kept the duplicate.
He later borrowed money from a licensed money lender and was unable to service his debt.
Taguibao then used the duplicated set of keys to enter his former girlfriend's unit on multiple occasions between Feb 3 last year and Jan 21 this year.
He stole from her $12,500 in cash, and jewellery worth more than $27,000 that he subsequently pawned. Court documents state that he was unemployed when he committed the offences.

On March 18 this year, Taguibao had a feeling that his former girlfriend may have changed the locks to her flat. He had intended to enter her unit again illegally that day.
He took a screenshot of a police report that had his address in it with his mobile phone and altered the address to that of the flat's using software.
Taguibao later showed the forged document to the locksmith after contacting him for help.
The locksmith dismantled the padlock securing the unit's metal gate, and picked the lock of the main door.
Taguibao was arrested after his former girlfriend called the police.
Taguibao has not made any restitution.
On Tuesday, the district judge allowed Taguibao's request to defer his jail term to Sept 6 so that he can settle his personal affairs.
For his forgery-related offence, he could have been jailed for up to 10 years and fined.
Taguibao could also have been jailed up to 20 years and fined for his housebreaking-related offence.

 

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#88

Teen, 16, admits to taking upskirt videos of schoolgirls, including one in primary school​

Dominic Low


AUG 3, 2021

SINGAPORE - Seeking out girls in their school uniforms at public places such as bus stops and MRT stations, a 16-year-old used his mobile phones to record upskirt videos.
At least one of his victims was still in primary school when he committed the offences between 2019 and this year.
Even after two of his mobile phones were seized by the police during investigations, the Malaysian used two other devices to film more videos.
The teen, a Singapore permanent resident, pleaded guilty on Tuesday (Aug 3) to three charges of voyeurism. He cannot be named as he is under 18 and therefore, has his identity protected under the Children and Young Persons Act.
His victims' identities are also protected under a gag order.
Three other charges, including one of insulting the modesty of a victim by asking her to expose herself, will be taken into consideration during his sentencing later.


The court heard that the teen was attracted to thin girls in school uniforms.
When he spotted such a girl, he would record an upskirt video.
The court heard that some of the videos were stored in a folder which required a password to access.
Two of the teen's mobile phones were seized on Jan 10 last year after the police began investigating him.

The police were acting on a complaint made by a 12-year-old girl's mother, who claimed that the teen had tried to touch her daughter's buttocks.
But the teen went on to record more videos using two other mobile phones that he had.
He targeted a 13-year-old girl in a lift on Sept 1 last year.
The girl eventually noticed him holding his mobile phone underneath her skirt and quickly left the lift. She lodged a police report the next day.
On April 14 this year, the teen's two other mobile phones were also seized by the police.

Court documents state that 58 upskirt videos were found in three of his mobile phones. Most of the victims captured in these videos were wearing school uniforms.
The teen was later assessed by a psychiatrist from the Institute of Mental Health to have "sexual arousal from obtaining upskirt videos of unsuspecting, non-consenting persons".
But the psychiatrist found that he did not have any mental illness and his behaviour did not "fulfil the criteria for a voyeuristic disorder".
On Tuesday, District Judge Kessler Soh called for a report assessing the teen's suitability for probation.
His case will be heard again on Sept 9.
Offenders guilty of voyeurism against a person under 14 can be jailed for up to two years, and fined or caned.

 

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#89

6 months’ jail for cook who molested domestic worker in lift in Bedok

By WONG PEI TING
Published AUGUST 05, 2021


Abdul Rahim Miskin, a Malaysian, hugged his victim and groped her chest while they were in a lift together.

SINGAPORE — A 55-year-old cook for an Indian food stall in Chai Chee was jailed for six months on Thursday (Aug 5) after molesting a foreign domestic worker in a lift last year. He had followed her into the lift a few times before he committed the crime.

The domestic worker, a 38-year-old Indonesian, cannot be named due to a court order.

The court heard that Abdul Rahim Miskin, a Malaysian who worked at the stall located at Block 26A Chai Chee Road, started making small talk with the victim sometime last year.

Her employer would get her to buy food from the stall.

They eventually exchanged contact numbers, became friends, and would chat with each other over messaging application WhatsApp.

Abdul Rahim then began following the woman home in November last year.

Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Chee Ee Ling said that he had followed the victim into the lift at least twice before he molested her on Dec 25 last year.

That day, Abdul Rahim entered the same lift as her after she went to buy food from the stall at about 1.30pm.


He pressed the button to the fourth floor and the victim pressed the button to the ninth floor.

When the lift started ascending, Abdul Rahim, who initially stood in front of the victim, went behind her, hugged her from behind, then used his left hand to grab her chest.

The woman struggled to break free and bent forward. She also started scolding him.

Abdul Rahim reacted by releasing his grip and patted her on the back.

READ ALSO
Man, 86, jailed for molesting 11-year-old girl and woman on public buses
When the lift reached the fourth floor, he exited and soon returned to the stall to continue working.

A surveillance camera that was installed in the lift captured Abdul Rahim’s actions.

The victim made a police report at close to 11pm that day, after telling her employer in the evening about being molested.

For outrage of modesty, Abdul Rahim could have been jailed for up to two years or fined, or both. He could have been caned as well but the law does not allow caning for people aged above 50.

 

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#90

Foreign worker died from electric shock while stealing cables: Coroner​

Murugan Kothalam had visited the Police National Service Department on Oct 15 last year and was not a trained electrician.PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM GOOGLE MAPS

Wong Shiying

Aug 6, 2021

SINGAPORE - A 27-year-old foreign worker was electrocuted to death in October last year while he was stealing electrical cables from the Police National Service Department.
A coroner's inquiry on Thursday (Aug 5) heard that Murugan Kothalam was a driver employed by engineering and IT solutions provider STIE.
He was not a trained electrician.
Kothalam had visited the work site on Oct 15 last year with three electricians who were authorised to dismantle equipment such as projector stands and hose reels.
The electricians were not permitted to cut or remove any electrical cables that day as the power supply of the facility was still on.
Wanting to steal the cables and sell them for a profit, Kothalam devised a plan with his colleague, Ezilarasan Nagarajan, an electrician at STIE. They had agreed to split the profits .

To retrieve the cables, Kothalam climbed a ladder to cut them loose while Nagarajan pulled them out from the ceiling.
At around 1pm that day, while Kothalam was alone in the room, one of the electricians heard a ladder shaking.
When he went to investigate the noise, he saw Kothalam's upper body above the ceiling panel. He was not moving even as the ladder continued to shake.
Suspecting that he had been electrocuted, the electrician kicked the ladder away, causing Kothalam to fall to the ground.
The workers at the site tried to resuscitate Kothalam but he did not respond. He was sent to Changi General Hospital and died about two hours later.
Inspections by the Ministry of Manpower and the Energy Market Authorities found that Kothalam had been cutting a live wire while gripping the non-insulated part of the cable cutter.
As he was holding onto the metal ceiling board frame, a closed circuit led to a fatal electric shock.
Coroner Adam Nakhoda ruled the death a misadventure.
Social enterprise ItsRainingRaincoats (IRR), which focuses on migrant worker issues, said in a post on website Give.Asia that Kothalam had a young son whom he never met.
A total of $6,841 has been raised for his family in an online drive by IRR.

 

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#91

Lawyer jailed 4 weeks, fined after assaulting cabby who declined to give him a ride​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Aug 6, 2021

SINGAPORE - A drunk American lawyer assaulted a taxi driver who had declined to pick him up as the latter was about to change shifts and was not heading towards the offender's intended destination.
Paul Chiethen Kuo, 47, was on Friday (Aug 6) sentenced to four weeks' jail and a fine of $3,000.
The Singapore permanent resident had pleaded guilty to one count each of assault and harassment.
Kuo, a practising lawyer with 20 years of experience, had been admitted to the Bar in New York and Hong Kong. He is also the chief legal officer of a Singapore-based firm.
At around 7pm on Dec 11 last year, he met some colleagues at a Korean restaurant in Tanjong Pagar Road and they downed multiple bottles of soju - an alcoholic beverage of Korean origin.
He left the eatery shortly before 11pm and went towards the nearby 100 AM shopping mall.

Mr Ong Beng Siong, 59, was seated in his taxi at the mall's waiting area when he saw Kuo walking with an unsteady gait towards his vehicle.
The cabby then asked some people at the waiting area if they wanted to go towards Tampines as he was in the midst of changing shifts.
Kuo reached the rear of Mr Ong's taxi and began banging its boot with his hand.
After that, the lawyer went to the front of the vehicle and asked the Singaporean cabby to take him home to Teng Tong Road, near Joo Chiat Road.

When Mr Ong declined to do so, the younger man moved to the right side of the taxi to speak to the driver.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Ong Xin Jie said in court: "The victim then wound down the window on the driver's right side of the vehicle to speak to the accused.
"The accused, angered that the victim was unwilling to give him a ride, then threw a punch at the right side of the victim's head with his right hand."
The cabby then got out of his vehicle to confront Kuo, prompting an eyewitness to step in and separate the pair.

The court heard that Kuo "remained belligerent" and hurled vulgarities at the taxi driver.
The eyewitness alerted the police and officers arrived at the scene soon after to arrest Kuo.
Mr Ong Beng Siong went to Singapore General Hospital where he was found with a 1cm superficial wound over the anterior region of his right ear. He was given three days of medical leave.
Kuo has since made about $560 in restitution to Mr Ong.
The American was represented by lawyers Shashi Nathan and Laura Yeo from Withers KhattarWong law firm.
In their mitigation plea, they said that their client "deeply regrets his actions and is genuinely remorseful".
They added: "Although the accused fully acknowledges that being intoxicated is not an excuse for his actions, we respectfully highlight that his level of intoxication severely impaired his judgment and caused him to behave in a manner that was extremely out of character."
For assault, an offender can be jailed for up to two years and fined up to $5,000.

 

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#92

The local media reported her as "Singaporean" whereas...(next post)

Unlicensed travel agent in S’pore jailed for pocketing S$35,000 from customers for trips to India, Dubai

By LOUISA TANG
Published AUGUST 10, 2021

Ili Mansor
S Leelavadi (pictured) lied to her customers that her mother was hospitalised or in the intensive care unit, so that they would postpone the trip or accept a refund. Photo taken on June 17, 2021.

• S Leelavadi promised customers she could book trips to India and Dubai for them
• One group handed over $15,000, while an elderly woman paid S$2,400
• When the trips were about to begin, she would ask them to postpone or cancel, or simply not show up
• She has paid full restitution to the victims

SINGAPORE — A 55-year-old woman was sentenced to 20 weeks’ jail on Tuesday (Aug 10) for misappropriating almost S$35,000 from customers who had paid her for tour packages that never materialised.

S Leelavadi, who worked as a freelance travel agent for over a decade, did not have the requisite licence to do so.

She cheated at least eight victims over 19 fake trips to India and the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, including an 82-year-old woman, and used the money for her personal expenses.

The Singaporean pleaded guilty earlier this year to one criminal breach of trust charge and two counts of practising as a travel agent without a licence from the Singapore Tourism Board.

Seven other similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.

Leelavadi will not begin serving her sentence immediately as she intends to file an appeal.

The court heard that she began working as a freelance travel agent sometime in 2000, only stopping for a few months in 2004 when she joined a licensed travel agency.


When she struck out on her own, she told customers that she could book tours for them to India and Dubai. She advised them on how to travel there, where to stay and their itinerary, and gave them a quotation for their desired tour.

They would then pay her a S$500 deposit which she said was necessary to make the relevant bookings. She directed them to make payments in cash or through a bank transfer to her mother’s bank account.

In the months before the departure date, she would chase them for the balance payments while sending them itineraries and advising them on various aspects of their trips, such as insurance, currency exchange and local tours.

Whenever the date of departure drew close or had passed and the trips did not materialise, she would lie to the customers that her mother was hospitalised or in the intensive care unit, so that they would postpone the trip or accept a refund.

When customers pressed her for the plane tickets so they could go on their own, she would say she could not provide them.

She ended up pocketing S$34,950 from eight victims between 2013 and 2017.

ONE GROUP PAID MORE THAN S$15,000

One such victim, Madam Muniyandi Karuppayee, was 82 years old at the time and lived in a rental flat.

When they met at an Indian sari shop in 2017, Leelavadi offered to arrange a tour to Kasi, India for her for S$2,400.

The shop owner advised Mdm Karuppayee not to go due to her health issues, but Leelavadi told him not to worry and reassured him that she would take care of the elderly woman.

After Mdm Karuppayee paid her a deposit of S$1,000, Leelavadi kept chasing the shop owner to ask the older woman for the balance payment of S$1,400.

The shop owner then transferred the money on Mdm Karuppayee’s behalf to Leelavadi’s mother’s account.

On the planned date of the trip, Mdm Karuppayee packed her luggage and waited for Leelavadi to give her a lift to the airport. Leelavadi did not turn up and did not pick up the shop owner’s calls.

Two days later, she called back and claimed her mother had been hospitalised. She was unable to show any proof that she had even booked flight tickets for the trip.

That same year, Leelavadi also offered to arrange a seven-day tour to Dubai for eight people. The group paid her a total of S$15,450.

The day before the trip, she asked them to postpone it, saying her mother had suffered a sudden heart attack that morning. She separately told one of them that the trip had to be cancelled as she was required to attend a court hearing soon.

As of mid-last year, Leelavadi had made full restitution to her victims.

For criminal breach of trust, she could have been jailed for up to seven years or fined, or both.

For working as an unlicensed travel agent, she could have been jailed for up to two years or fined up to S$10,000, or both.

 

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#92

....Indian media reported her as Indian-origin. See how the local media try to cover up the deeds of FTs.

Indian-Origin Woman Jailed In Singapore For Cheating As Travel Agent: Report​

S Leelavadi cheated at least eight victims over 19 fake trips to India and the city of Dubai, reported TODAY newspaper.​

Updated: August 10, 2021 1:56 pm IST

Seven other similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing (Representational)


Singapore:
A 55-year-old Indian-origin woman in Singapore was sentenced to 20 weeks' jail on Tuesday for misappropriating around SGD 35,000 from customers who had paid her for tour packages to India and Dubai that never materialised, according to a media report.
S Leelavadi, who worked as a freelance travel agent for over a decade without the requisite licence to do so, cheated at least eight victims over 19 fake trips to India and the city of Dubai, reported TODAY newspaper.
The Singaporean pleaded guilty earlier this year to one criminal breach of trust charge and two counts of practising as a travel agent without a licence from the Singapore Tourism Board.
Seven other similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.
Leelavadi will not begin serving her sentence immediately as she intends to file an appeal, the report said.
The court heard that she began working as a freelance travel agent sometime in 2000, only stopping for a few months in 2004 when she joined a licensed travel agency.
When she struck out on her own, she told customers that she could book tours for them to India and Dubai. She advised them on how to travel there, where to stay and their itinerary, and gave them a quotation for their desired tour.
They would then pay her a SGD 500 deposit which she said was necessary to make the relevant bookings. She directed them to make payments in cash or through a bank transfer to her mother's bank account.
In the months before the departure date, she would chase them for the balance payments while sending them itineraries and advising them on various aspects of their trips, such as insurance, currency exchange and local tours, the report said.
Whenever the date of departure drew close or had passed and the trips did not materialise, she would lie to the customers that her mother was hospitalised or in the intensive care unit, so that they would postpone the trip or accept a refund.
When customers pressed her for the plane tickets so they could go on their own, she would say she could not provide them.
She ended up pocketing SGD 34,950 from eight victims between 2013 and 2017.
One such victim was 82-year old Muniyandi Karuppayee whom Leelavadi offered to arrange a tour to Kasi for SGD2,400 in 2017.
On the planned date of the trip, Karuppayee packed her luggage and waited for Leelavadi to give her a lift to the airport. Leelavadi did not turn up and did not pick up the shop owner's calls.
Two days later, she called and claimed her mother had been hospitalised. She was unable to show any proof that she had even booked flight tickets for the trip.
That same year, Leelavadi also offered to arrange a seven-day tour to Dubai for eight people. The group paid her a total of SGD 15,450.
The day before the trip, she asked them to postpone it, saying her mother had suffered a heart attack that morning. She separately told one of them that the trip had to be cancelled as she was required to attend a court hearing soon.
As of mid-last year, Leelavadi had made full restitution to her victims.
For criminal breach of trust, she could have been jailed for up to seven years or fined, or both.


For working as an unlicensed travel agent, she could have been jailed for up to two years or fined up to SGD10,000, or both.

 

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Jail for voyeur who stood on basin to film couple having sex in public park toilet​

Photo illustration of a voyeur filming in a women's toilet.

Lydia Lam​

@LydiaLamCNA
16 Aug 2021

A voyeur followed a couple to a public toilet at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park and stood on a basin to film them showering and having sex in a cubicle.

Two days later, he waited for them again at the same spot after observing that they would return at a certain time.

Indian national Kuppusamy Karthik, 36, was caught red-handed by another victim's boyfriend. He was jailed for 17 weeks on Monday (Aug 16) after pleading guilty to three counts of voyeurism. Another three charges were taken into consideration.
The court heard that Karthik was near the activity lawn and therapeutic garden at Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park on the evening of Oct 28, 2020.
He saw a man and woman, whose identities have not been established, entering a shower cubicle. He then entered the cubicle next to theirs, which was meant for the disabled.
Curious as to what the couple was doing, Karthik climbed onto the basin and mirror in his cubicle and used a metal bar to maintain his grip, the prosecutor said.
From his perspective, he had a full view of the couple's shower unit, the court heard.

Karthik filmed about three videos and took four to five photos of the couple using his phone, capturing their naked bodies and their faces.
He returned to the same spot two days later. After waiting for some time, he saw the couple enter a shower cubicle. He went to the same adjacent toilet, climbed up on the basin, filmed them engaging in sexual intercourse and took photos of them.
Karthik returned to the park on Nov 19, 2020, and went to a different toilet where he filmed three videos. One of them captured an unidentified woman entering the toilet.
A 22-year-old man later called the police, saying: "I caught this guy who (was) caught looking at my girlfriend peeing."
Karthik was arrested at around 3.30am on Nov 20 and his phone was seized. Investigations uncovered the other recordings he had made illegally.

The prosecutor called for at least 18 weeks' jail, noting that Karthik was goal-oriented in his actions, entering the neighbouring toilet cubicle to observe the couple.
He had also committed similar offences in less than a month.
The maximum punishment for such voyeurism was doubled from one to two years under the Penal Code as part of amendments last year, said the prosecutor.
"This evidences Parliament's intent that such offences should be punished more severely, particularly in response to the perceived inadequacy of previous penalties in deterring would-be offenders," she said.

 

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Man jailed 1 year for abusing maid by burning her forearm with a spatula while drunk

By LOUISA TANG
Published AUGUST 17, 2021

Rajamanickam Suresh Kumar arriving at the State Courts on May 19, 2021.

• Rajamanickam Suresh Kumar was found guilty of two charges of abusing Ms Vadivel Gowthami
• He burned the domestic worker’s forearm with a spatula and pulled her wrist in 2018
• While on trial, the 35-year-old failed to turn up in court and was charged with jumping bail

SINGAPORE — A 35-year-old man was sentenced to one year behind bars on Tuesday (Aug 17) for twice abusing his domestic worker in 2018 after returning home intoxicated.

Rajamanickam Suresh Kumar, a Singapore permanent resident from India, was found guilty of voluntarily causing hurt to Ms Vadivel Gowthami by means of a heated substance by burning her forearm with a spatula.

He was also convicted of using criminal force on the Indian national by pulling her wrist and pushing her into her room.

He denied committing the offences during his trial but District Judge Ronald Gwee found that the prosecution had proved the charges beyond a reasonable doubt.

On the second day of his trial on Oct 20 last year, Rajamanickam also failed to turn up in court, saying he felt unwell.

He was hauled back and charged the next day with absconding while out on bail. Deputy Public Prosecutor Thiagesh Sukumaran asked for a pre-trial conference to be held to deal with this charge.

Rajamanickam was remanded after allegedly jumping bail, up till December last year. This period will be factored into his jail sentence.

He was unrepresented as two lawyers who previously defended him had discharged themselves.


WHAT HAPPENED

During the trial, the court heard it was Ms Vadivel’s first time working in Singapore. Ms Vadivel cleaned, cooked and took care of Rajamanickam’s children. She earned S$400 a month and was told that she had to work between 5.30am and 11.30pm every day.

She testified that she told her agent in July 2018 that she wanted to return to India, as she felt tired every day.

The agent said she could not help her, but subsequently told Rajamanickam’s wife about Ms Vadivel’s complaint.

On Oct 18, 2018, Rajamanickam returned home in an intoxicated state at about 7.30pm.

Ms Vadivel was in the midst of making thosai, an Indian savoury pancake, when she went to the hall for a short while. When she went back to the kitchen, Rajamanickam was holding the spatula, which he then used to burn her forearm.

He left and she later went to sleep in her room.

After reporting the case to the police, she told staff at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital that he had been upset with her for preparing dinner late.

The next day, Ms Vadivel told Rajamanickam’s wife, Ms Pandiselve Pandian, that she had burned herself. She lied because she was having financial difficulties and no longer wished to return to India.

Later that night, Rajamanickam returned home drunk once more. He told Ms Vadivel to go to his mother-in-law’s place to bring his daughter home.

Ms Vadivel refused to do this as it was past her working hours. He then told her: “Since MOM (Ministry of Manpower) informed you to sleep at 10pm, why are you still awake?”, pulled her wrist and pushed her into her room.

The next day, she told Ms Pandiselve to send her back but the other woman told her to stay on.

Ms Vadivel soon returned to the unit from Ms Pandiselve’s mother’s home to retrieve some belongings before calling the police.

The maximum penalty for causing hurt by means of a heated substance is up to seven years’ jail, a fine and caning.

Employers who cause hurt to domestic helpers in their household are liable to one-and-a-half times the punishment — resulting in up to 10.5 years’ jail.

For using criminal force, Rajamanickam could have been jailed for up to three months or fined up to S$1,500, or both.

If convicted of absconding, he could be jailed up to three years or fined, or both.

 

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Two travellers given jail sentence after spending time together in hotel room while on SHN​

Bojanki Suresh Naidu (left) and Bharati Tulshiram Choudhari were each sentenced to three weeks' jail.
ST PHOTOS: KELVIN CHNG

David Sun

Aug 17, 2021

SINGAPORE - A desire to chat and share snacks while serving stay-home notice (SHN) in a hotel here has earned two travellers a stay behind bars.
Bojanki Suresh Naidu, 37, and Bharati Tulshiram Choudhari, 48, were each sentenced to three weeks' jail on Tuesday (Aug 17) for breaching their SHNs.
They had each pleaded to a charge of exposing others to the risk of infection while having reason to suspect they may have been carriers of Covid-19.
Another charge for not wearing a mask was taken into consideration for Suresh during sentencing.
The Indian nationals had flown into Singapore on the same flight from India on March 14.
The prosecution said this was at the height of the second wave in India, with the Delta variant causing record-breaking infections and deaths.

Both are Singapore permanent residents, and did not to know each other prior to the flight. But they became acquainted as their rooms were both on the 16th floor of Oasia Hotel Novena.
They exchanged numbers after Suresh, a logistics lead with pharmaceutical company Novartis, dialled the number for Bharati's room. She was unemployed at the time.
They came up with a plan to meet at her room, for Suresh to collect snacks from Bharati and for them to chat.
At about 12.30am on March 20, Suresh left his room without wearing a mask and went to Bharati's room.

She opened the door for him and they were in the room together till about 1am.
When Suresh went back to his room, he found himself locked out, and went back to Bharati's room for another five minutes.
He then used his mobile phone to call the hotel staff, and a security officer let him back into his room at about 1.20am.
The officer asked Suresh how he came to be locked out, and Suresh lied by claiming he had difficulties breathing and had left his room for fresh air.
When the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority investigated, the duo lied and attempted to portray their meeting as accidental.
Suresh claimed that he drank two cans of beer and felt suffocated, leaving to get fresh air. He said he had knocked on Bharati's door for help.
Bharati lied that she heard a knock and found Suresh outside her door, claiming that he said he was feeling suffocated and needed help.

But their story fell apart because of security camera footage of the hotel's corridor which showed that they had both opened their doors at the same time at 12.30am, as prearranged.
On Tuesday, both pleaded for leniency from the court.
Bharati said she has been living in Singapore for 11 years, and that she has embarrassed her family.
Suresh said he has been living in Singapore for more than a decade, and had been a volunteer at a community club for seven years.
He added that he was not in a relationship with Bharati, and that she had only wanted to help him by giving him food.
He also said he has a wife and two kids here to support.

District Judge Chay Yuen Fatt allowed both of them to defer their sentences so they could settle their personal affairs before going to jail.
Suresh is to surrender himself on Sept 6, and Bharati is to surrender herself on Aug 31.
For breaching their SHNs and exposing others to the risk of infection, they could each have been jailed for up to six months and fined up to $10,000.
Repeat offenders can be jailed for up to a year and fined up to $20,000.

 

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#96

Two club bosses who told dancers to have sex with customers jailed and fined​

The duo employed several women as performing artistes to dance and entertain customers at their club, Kollywood.PHOTOS: KOLLYWOOD MUSIC LOUNGE/FACEBOOK

Selina Lum
Law Correspondent

Aug 25, 2021

SINGAPORE - A Bangladeshi woman came to Singapore thinking that an agent had arranged a domestic worker job for her, but was instead told to work as a dancer in a club.
Two weeks later, she was promised $1,000 if she had sex with a friend of one of the club's bosses. She refused and was slapped by one of the bosses.
The following month, she and three other performing artistes at the club went to the authorities.
Last year, the two men who ran the club were found guilty of several prostitution-related offences and for obstructing the course of justice.
Rajendran Nagarethinam, 60, who faced four charges, and Arumaikannu Sasikumar, 46, who faced three charges, appealed against their convictions and sentences.
On Wednesday (Aug 25), the High Court partly allowed Rajendran's appeals, acquitting him of one charge and reducing his sentence in two other charges.


His overall sentence was cut from 30 months' jail and a $3,000 fine to 19 months' jail and a $2,500 fine.
The court dismissed Sasikumar's appeals and upheld his sentence of 16 months' jail and a $11,000 fine.
Rajendran, a Singaporean, and Sasikumar, a permanent resident, employed several women as performing artistes to dance and entertain customers at their club, Kollywood.
Two such women were Ms Akter Bithi, who arrived in Singapore on Sept 7, 2015, and Ms Akter Tina, who arrived here on Jan 16, 2016. They were then in their mid-20s.

On separate occasions, Rajendran or Sasikumar, assisted by a Bangladeshi employee named Roky, asked the two women to provide sexual services to customers.
Ms Bithi reluctantly agreed to have sex with two customers as she was worried that Sasikumar would withhold her salary. Each customer paid her $500, which she passed to Sasikumar.
Ms Tina adamantly refused to have sex with customers, even after Rajendran showed her bundles of $50 and $100 notes.

Angered, he slapped her and then gripped her from behind by the neck, but she freed herself.
In the early hours of Feb 11, 2016, Ms Bithi, Ms Tina and two other women who worked at the club left the flat where they were housed.
With help from a compatriot, they reported to the Manpower Ministry that they had not been paid their salaries and were made to go out with customers.
Rajendran and Sasikumar each faced charges for procuring Ms Bithi for the purposes of prostitution and for living on her earnings from prostitution.
Rajendran also faced a charge of recruiting Ms Tina for sexual exploitation.
Both men also each faced a charge of obstructing the course of justice by arranging for Roky to leave Singapore in order to evade arrest.
In Rajendran's appeal, he said that Ms Tina was recruited to be a domestic worker and then a performing artiste, not for sexual exploitation.
He argued that there was no sexual exploitation as she refused his requests to have sex with customers.
He also argued that he did not procure Ms Bithi for prostitution.

Justice Tay found that Rajendran clearly tried to recruit Ms Tina for the purpose of prostitution. He convicted Rajendran of an amended charge of attempted recruitment, and cut the jail term for this charge from 14 months to seven months.
The judge acquitted Rajendran of the procurement charge as there was insufficient evidence to show that Rajendran was involved in the first instance of Ms Bithi's prostitution.
Accordingly, he halved Rajendran's sentence for living on the earnings of prostitution, from eight months' jail and a $1,000 fine to four months' jail and a $500 fine.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#97

Man who broke into woman's home and fractured her neck jailed for four and a half years​

Wong Shiying

Aug 26, 2021

SINGAPORE - Angry that the woman he had feelings for could not meet him because she was out drinking with friends, Shao Changdong broke into her flat, threatened her with a knife and grabbed her neck so hard that it fractured.
The 27-year-old Chinese national then tried to take her back to his home but the police arrested him near a 7-Eleven store.
Shao was sentenced to 41/2 years' jail on Thursday (Aug 26) after pleading guilty to one charge each of abduction, housebreaking, causing grievous hurt and criminal intimidation.
Two other similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.
The court heard that Shao got to know the victim, a 28-year-old Singaporean woman, when they were renting bedrooms in the same flat in 2016.
She moved out and rented another room elsewhere in July 2019.

Shao confessed his feelings to her some time in the middle of last year and but he was turned down. The two continued to stay in touch as Shao owed the victim money.
On Sept 5 last year, Shao wanted to send fruits to the woman's house but she was out drinking with her friends and wanted to meet on another day.
Angry and jealous as he believed her friends included other men, he headed to her house carrying a foldable knife, two sleeping pills, a white cloth and a bottle containing a mixture of water and cleaning agent.
He entered the flat using a key the victim kept at a window sill and forced open the locked door to her bedroom.

The victim screamed when she returned home and saw him standing behind the bedroom door. To stop her screaming, Shao grabbed her neck so tightly that she could not breathe.
He then locked the door and covered her face using the cloth with the cleaning agent.
Shao instructed the victim to swallow the sleeping pills he brought but she only pretended to comply. He held the blade of the knife against her neck, saying: "If you do no want to see blood, you'd better listen to what I say."
He eventually dragged her out of her home and they stopped at a convenience store to buy drinks and cigarettes.
There, the victim held onto a display shelf as Shao pulled her, causing it to topple. Shao then carried her out of the store as the victim flailed about. Video footage of the scene was played in court.
A taxi driver saw the commotion and called the police. When the police approached, Shao placed the victim in a chokehold, but let go when the officers told him to do so.
The victim was taken to Singapore General Hospital where she was diagnosed with a fractured bone in her neck. She was given 20 days of medical leave.
Seeking a jail term of between four and six years' jail, Deputy Public Prosecutor Kathy Chu said there was a high degree of premeditation and planning involved.
Shao, who was unrepresented, said in mitigation that he never intended to hurt the victim. "I like her and I wouldn't harm her. I only used the knife to intimidate her... and the sleeping pills were to help her rest."
For voluntarily causing grievous hurt and housebreaking, Shao could have been jailed for up to 10 years and fined or caned.
For abduction, he could have been jailed for up to seven years, fined and caned.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#98

Jail for married couple who abused maid with acts including forcing her to drink toilet water​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Aug 30, 2021

SINGAPORE - A husband-and-wife pair will be spending time behind bars after repeatedly abusing their domestic helper.
Among a number of humiliating acts they subjected her to, she was forced drink water from a toilet bowl and had a soiled nappy rubbed on her face.
On one occasion, Ms Sri Rahayu, 33, was hit with a metal ladle which caused her to faint.
The Indonesian finally ran away from her tormentors' Anchorvale Link flat in January 2018.
During a medical examination, she was found with injuries including a deformed left ear lobe. It is likely to be permanent.
She was also found to have mild to moderate hearing loss to the ear.

Her employer Ooi Wei Voen, 37, was on Monday (Aug 30) sentenced to 20 months' jail after she pleaded guilty to four assault charges.
The Malaysian's husband, Pang Chen Yong, also 37, pleaded guilty to three counts of assault and was given four months' jail.
The court heard that both offenders had worked as IT engineers. At the time of the offences, they had a two-year-old son and a nine-month-old daughter.
Ooi, a Singapore permanent resident, employed Ms Sri on April 19, 2017. The helper did not get any days off and did not have a mobile phone.

She usually started work at 6.30am and would complete her chores only at around 1am.
The couple starting abusing Ms Sri about three months into her employment when they felt that her work was unsatisfactory.
The court heard that when Pang, a Singaporean, got upset with Ms Sri, he would hit the maid's head and upper arms, causing bruising.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Goh Qi Shuen said: "When Ooi got upset with the victim, she would slap the victim on both her cheeks till they became red - once causing cut on her lips - pound her forehead with her fist or hit the victim's hand with a metal ruler.
"Other times, Ooi made the victim perform squats, which the victim duly performed because she was afraid that Ooi would hit her instead."
On one occasion, Ooi was unhappy with Ms Sri after the maid failed to ensure that the laundry was dry.
As punishment, she ordered Ms Sri to wet her own clothes and sleep in them. The maid complied.

Sometime between July and November 2017, Ooi rubbed a nappy filled with faeces on Ms Sri's face and forced her to drink water from a toilet bowl.
Ooi also splashed hot water on the right side of Ms Sri's waist in October 2017 when her crying daughter refused to sleep.
The DPP said: "Sometime between October and November 2017... Pang noticed that his baby was crying and blamed the victim for being late in preparing milk for his baby.
"Pang then grabbed, pulled and scratched the victim's ears, causing the victim's ears to become itchy and swollen. The victim's left ear also bled."
A few days later, Ooi accused Ms Sri of sneezing near her baby's milk bottle and forcefully slapped the helper's left ear, causing it to become more swollen and painful.
On Nov 22, 2017, Ooi took Ms Sri to a clinic for her mandatory checkup. The court heard that the doctor did not speak to Ms Sri and communicated only with Ooi.
"The history taken by Dr Wong Tien Hua at Mutual Healthcare Medical Clinic... stated that the victim was bitten by an unknown insect a few days prior. This history given was untrue," said DPP Goh.
Ooi took the maid to another clinic the following month as the swelling to the latter's ear did not subside.
The court heard that according to a report by Dr Jason Ong of Sunbeam Medical Clinic, the victim had earlier sustained an injury to her ear in Indonesia when she was hit by her husband.
DPP Goh told the court: "The victim's ear did not in fact have such a deformity when she arrived in Singapore and the history given was untrue."
To conceal her injuries, Ms Sri was, on occasion, made to wear a tudung when they went out.
The victim was also told not to hang laundry at the flat's window when her arms were swollen or bruised.

Whenever Ms Sri made a mistake with her household chores, the couple would make her record it on a "mistake sheet".
Some time before Christmas 2017, Ooi used a metal ladle to hit Ms Sri's thighs multiple times until the latter fainted. The maid had trouble walking for a few days after this incident.
At around 1am on Jan 1 , 2018, Pang got upset with Ms Sri for failing to tell him that his daughter had a fever.
He then took a plastic scoop and splashed cold water on the helper. After that, he used it to repeatedly strike Ms Sri's head.
Ooi joined in the attack soon after and kicked her. The couple were attending to their daughter when Ms Sri ran out of the flat.
Ms Sri sought help from another Indonesian helper who happened to be passing by and she was taken to a police station.
After that, Ms Sri went to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital where she was found with injuries including multiple bruises and a deformed left ear lobe.
On Jan 2, 2018, Ooi called the police, stating that Ms Sri had run away.

DPP Goh said that both Ooi and Pang had been found to be suffering from major depressive disorder at the time of their offences.
She added: "Nevertheless, Ooi's (disorder) has not caused her to have a total lack of self-control and restraint of her acts at the time of her offences...(A doctor) opined that Pang's (disorder) may have led to an increased impulsivity in reacting to stressful situations."
Pang started serving his sentence on Monday.
Meanwhile, Ooi's bail has been set at $5,000 and she will be serving her sentence after Pang completes his as she has to take care of their two children.
She was ordered to surrender herself at the State Courts on Jan 3 next year to begin serving her sentence.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#99

Jail for woman who left Yishun home, met boyfriend while on MC for Covid-19 symptoms

By LOUISA TANG
Published SEPTEMBER 01, 2021

• Ang Siu Yen was ordered to stay home till she got a negative Covid-19 swab test result
• But she left home on the day she received an MC and the day after
• She took multiple public buses and MRTs, met her boyfriend and went shopping

SINGAPORE — A 22-year-old woman was sentenced to three weeks’ jail on Wednesday (Sept 1) for breaching Covid-19 laws, by leaving her home after being diagnosed with acute respiratory infection symptoms.

Ang Siu Yen had been given a four-day medical certificate (MC) and told to stay home until she received a negative result for her Covid-19 swab test.

But shortly afterwards, she took public transport multiple times including buses and MRTs, met her boyfriend and shopped in various malls.

Ang, a Singapore permanent resident from Malaysia, pleaded guilty to one charge under the Infectious Diseases (Covid-19 – Stay Orders) Regulations 2020. Another charge was taken into consideration for sentencing.

WENT OUT ON TWO DAYS

The court heard that she visited Healthway Medical Clinic along Yishun Avenue 11 on the morning of Oct 24 last year to seek treatment for a runny nose, cough with phlegm, and a dry sore throat.

A doctor diagnosed her with an upper respiratory tract infection, telling her to go for a Covid-19 swab test and stay home till she received the results. Ang acknowledged this and the doctor issued her a four-day MC from Oct 24 to 27.

She returned to her rental flat at Yishun Ring Road after being swabbed, but left several hours later.

Court documents showed that she took a public bus to Yishun MRT Station, went to the Cheng Siong supermarket outlet at Junction Nine shopping mall to shop with her boyfriend Song Mun Jian, and went back home in a public bus.

The next day, she left home again and took several public buses to the National Library in Bugis.

While she was out, a doctor from the clinic came to her house to tell her that she needed to take another swab test. The first one had been rejected.

As she was not home, he contacted her through her housemate’s mobile phone and reminded her that she should not leave her home.

Nevertheless, Ang met her boyfriend again around 2pm and they shopped at Bugis Junction mall, before taking the train to Yew Tee MRT Station.

She also bumped into a friend and walked two dogs with the other woman, even posing for a photograph. She then walked to Yew Tee Point mall and had dinner with her boyfriend before returning home around 8pm.

The authorities traced her steps using EZ-link records.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Norman Yew sought four weeks’ jail, saying there was “no necessity or urgency” for Ang to leave home and that she had not taken the requirement to stay home while on MC seriously.

Ang’s lawyer Jerome Tan, who asked for a shorter jail term of three weeks for his client, argued that she had gone out when her symptoms had subsided and that she had told the authorities she was sorry for taking the MC lightly.

In sentencing her, Principal District Judge Victor Yeo said it was irrelevant whether she was still symptomatic or not, as those who have Covid-19 may not exhibit symptoms anyway.

Ang ultimately tested negative for the coronavirus.

She could have been jailed for up to six months or fined up to S$10,000, or both, for breaching Covid-19 laws.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man on trial for repeatedly assaulting, molesting woman over half a year

By LOUISA TANG
Published JANUARY 28, 2020


Mitch Vanhille, a 39-year-old Belgian national based in Singapore, is accused of committing the offences from May 16 to Nov 21 in 2018.

SINGAPORE — A former regional director with Nike began standing trial in a district court on Tuesday (Jan 28) for a dozen criminal charges, including assaulting and wrongfully confining a woman.

Mitch Vanhille, a 39-year-old Belgian national based in Singapore, is accused of committing the offences from May 16 to Nov 21 in 2018.

His alleged victim cannot be named due to a court gag order to protect her identity.

Vanhille, who has competed in Ironman competitions, is contesting 12 charges including:

Locking the woman out on a balcony and backyard on two different occasions

Molesting her by pulling down their underwear and pressing his penis against her thigh

Throwing a remote control at her which hit her lip

Dragging the alleged victim by her hair across the corridor to her main door

Dragging her off a bed by her legs onto the floor causing a minor elbow abrasion and head bruise

Repeatedly hitting the alleged victim’s thighs with a laptop

Spitting on her face

Hitting the woman’s legs with his elbows

Forcing her mouth open and slapping her forehead

Hitting her face with a pair of jeans with a belt attached to it

Vanhille’s lawyers, Ms Kasturibai Manickam and Mr Paul, told District Judge Sarah Tan that they intend to argue that the alleged victim’s accusations were borne “out of malice”.

The lawyers were attempting to explain why text messages between Vanhille and the organiser of a charity run he participated in should be admitted as evidence.


When the judge asked how the messages were relevant to the charges, Mr Paul, replied that they showed “the interference of the victim in his affairs after he was charged”.

“We’re saying that the victim was not content with making a complaint. She went further by wanting to destroy him, destroy his career, destroy his athletic career,” the lawyer said.


“He will say that he had no intention to embarrass or humiliate her. She turned the whole thing around and claimed he molested and assaulted her… It goes towards her motive for making reports against him,” Mr Paul added.

District Judge Tan told them that the prosecution will argue at a later juncture about the relevance of the messages.

Earlier during the trial, Vanhille’s former neighbour testified that she frequently heard arguments taking place in his condominium apartment.

Its location was redacted from court documents.

Worker who molested bedbound resident at nursing home gets jail, caning after apex court overturns acquittal
She recounted an incident in July 2018, when she heard a “very loud sound” one evening — so loud that she thought someone had fallen off a balcony.

When she ran out of her apartment to check what had happened, she saw a woman lying on the ground and leaning towards Vanhille’s front door.

The woman was crying, the neighbour testified, and did not respond when asked if she needed help.

“I told her if there was anything you need, I will be waiting on my sofa and I can hear everything… I went back in and waited till 1am. I don’t recall the exact time, but I heard something like a trolley or suitcase rolling over the floor. Then I went to bed,” she added.

The neighbour had heard arguments coming from Vanhille’s apartment for about a year before this incident, she told the court.

The trial continues on Wednesday with the alleged victim taking the stand.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man convicted of repeatedly assaulting and trapping woman in condo, acquitted of molesting her

By LOUISA TANG
Published SEPTEMBER 14, 2021

Mitch Vanhille/Instagram
Mitch Vanhille, a Belgian national based in Singapore, was convicted of seven counts of voluntarily causing hurt, two counts of wrongful confinement, and one of using criminal force on the victim.

• Mitch Vanhille, 41, was found guilty of 10 charges and cleared of two others
• The Ironman competitor did not deny most of the physical acts during the trial but gave various defences
• The acts he was convicted of include dragging the victim by her hair across a corridor, and hitting her face with a pair of jeans with an attached belt
• He will return for mitigation and sentencing on Sept 30

SINGAPORE — A 41-year-old expatriate was found guilty on Tuesday (Sept 14) of 10 charges of attacking and confining a woman in his Farrer Road condominium unit, but acquitted of one charge each of assault and molestation.

Mitch Vanhille, a Belgian national based in Singapore, had contested all the charges in a trial that began in January last year. He was accused of committing the offences from May 16 to Nov 21 in 2018.

His victim cannot be named due to a court gag order to protect her identity. Her relationship with Vanhille also cannot be publicly disclosed.

On Tuesday, District Judge Sarah Tan convicted him of seven counts of voluntarily causing hurt, two counts of wrongful confinement, and one of using criminal force on the victim.

He did not deny most of the physical acts but gave various defences, such as not deliberately aiming a remote control at her which struck her lip.


Vanhille, who has competed in Ironman competitions, will return to court on Sept 30 for mitigation and sentencing. His bail quantum was raised from S$15,000 to S$20,000.

CONVICTIONS

District Judge Tan noted that the incidents took place after September 2017, when Vanhille returned to Singapore from the Ironman World Championship in the US.

On May 16, 2018, the victim went to his condominium unit balcony to smoke, closing the door to prevent smoke from getting into the unit.

Vanhille admitted to engaging one of the locks, testifying that he wanted to “stop her annoyance” and “get some peace and quiet”. However, the victim gave evidence that he always left that lock unlocked.

He alleged through his defence counsel that there was no wrongful confinement because two other locks on panels leading to the living and exercise room were routinely unlocked. But she testified that she had unsuccessfully tried to open the panels at the exercise room.

In finding that Vanhille had trapped the victim on the balcony, the judge referred to his text messages to her, which included: “Let me know when you’re ready to leave and I will let you out.”

For the second incident of wrongful confinement, the victim had gone out to the backyard on Aug 30, 2018 to smoke. Vanhille then locked the door which led to the kitchen, asserting that he did so to stop her from arguing with him.

The assault incidents comprised:

Throwing a remote control at the victim which hit her lip
Dragging her by her hair across the corridor to the main door
Dragging her off a bed by her legs onto the floor causing a minor elbow abrasion and head bruise
Repeatedly hitting her thighs with a laptop
Spitting on her face
Hitting her legs with his elbows
Hitting her face with a pair of jeans with a belt attached to it
Vanhille testified that he had indeed dragged her down the corridor on July 24, 2018 after telling her to leave the unit and keep quiet. She refused to do so and sat outside his bedroom door.

He claimed it had not occurred to him that she would be injured, and did know she had hit her head on the ground.

The judge found that he had the intention of causing hurt or the knowledge that it would likely happen. “Indeed, he testified that in the course of dragging her, she had resisted.”

ACQUITTALS

On the other hand, District Judge Tan cleared Vanhille of molesting the victim by pulling down their underwear and pressing his penis against her thigh on Nov 21, 2018.

Vanhille had testified that he was about to cave in to the victim and have sex with her, but was not able to do so because he was not sufficiently aroused.

“This was a case of her word against his word. Weighing all the evidence, I find that the prosecution has not proven the charge beyond a reasonable doubt and I acquit him,” the judge noted.

She also acquitted Vanhille of forcefully opening the victim’s mouth and slapping her forehead on July 31, 2018.

The victim had sent him text messages that read: “I hope you have the life you always wanted, away from people who aren’t good enough”, “Goodbye”, “You might want to check in the spare room tomorrow” and “But don’t worry, it won't stink for a while”.

She testified in court that she had retrieved some pills from Vanhille’s cabinet, sat on the bed and placed the pills in front of her. When Vanhille arrived home, he had to kick the door down as she had locked it from the inside.

The victim alleged that he had told her something along the lines of “don’t be selfish and kill yourself here”.

District Judge Tan said: “This scene would have pretty much painted a picture of intended or impending suicide, coupled with the earlier messages.

"In the accused’s mind, he thought the victim was trying to kill herself and in fact scolded her for it… I accept there was a reasonable doubt that he was trying to check for or remove any pills in her mouth.”

For voluntarily causing hurt, he could be jailed for up to two years or fined up to S$10,000, or both.

For wrongful confinement, he could be jailed for up to three years or fined, or both.

 

[Incognito]

There are many expats from many countries here. Have we really go to the root of problem why only THEY? A concern on when this discriminatory law takes effect, this law will protect the minority of THEM.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Jail for duo who cheated two banks by concealing foreign interests behind S'pore firms​

Russian Vadim Koryagin (left) and Singaporean Andruew Tang You Liang had been charged in 2019 for their offences.

ST PHOTOS: KELVIN CHNG

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

SEP 8, 2021


SINGAPORE - A Russian man was on Wednesday (Sept 8) sentenced to four weeks' jail, while his Singaporean accomplice was given two weeks behind bars after they colluded to cheat two banks in 2014 and 2016.
Russian Vadim Koryagin, 53, and Singaporean Andruew Tang You Liang, 32, were charged in 2019 for their offences, which entailed circumventing the banks' anti-money laundering procedures.
They were convicted earlier this year on three counts of cheating each.
District Judge Eddy Tham said on Wednesday that Koryagin was the "principal driver" in the offences, before handing him the stiffer sentence.
The judge noted that there was no evidence of illicit funds involved in the men's cases.
Tang had cheated OCBC Bank and Maybank Singapore by concealing from them the "ultimate beneficial ownership" of two companies and a bank account linked to him.

He was one of four Singaporeans charged with offences related to Koryagin's scheme.
Koryagin was a director in MEA Business Solutions, which helped foreign clients incorporate companies and set up bank accounts in Singapore.
He had a pool of Singaporeans whom he engaged to serve as local resident directors for these firms, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) said in a statement.
This was done to fulfil the regulatory requirement of having at least one director in the firm who is ordinarily a Singapore resident.

Appointing resident nominee directors is allowed under the law, but Koryagin's and Tang's crime was in declaring to the banks that Tang controlled the companies when in fact they had foreign owners.
The CPIB said: "Vadim would register each company with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (Acra) in the name of the local resident director and list them as the sole shareholder of the company in Acra's records.
"Vadim would also instruct the local resident director to open a corporate bank account for the company in certain instances."
He abetted Tang to falsely declare himself to the banks as the ultimate beneficial owner of the companies and bank account in question.
Tang led OCBC into believing that he was the ultimate beneficial owner of two firms, the Babo Group and Evoque Capital Corp.
He also deceived Maybank Singapore into believing that he was the ultimate beneficial owner of a bank account for a company called Sensetec.

"Vadim had also provided (Tang) with the necessary information to answer the questions posed by bank representatives who were trying to establish the true beneficial ownership of these companies (and) bank accounts," said the CPIB.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Charis Low said that the pair committed their offences through a combination of false declarations and supporting Acra documents.
She added: "Singapore is committed to combat money laundering through the implementation and strict enforcement of anti-money laundering regulations.
"Attempts to deceive financial institutions and circumvent rigorous know-your-customer due diligence requirements must attract a deterrent sentence."
Two Singaporean women - Phee Sim Gek, 43, and Seet Mei Siah, 64 - were each sentenced to five days' jail last year over their roles in the offences.
The case involving a fourth Singaporean, Joel Sam Thomas, 37, is pending.
Acra said on Wednesday that it has cancelled the registration of a filing agent called MEA Business Consultancy, which MEA Business Solutions had engaged to set up 14 local companies and provide corporate secretarial services.

An online search revealed that Koryagin did not hold directorial positions in MEA Business Consultancy. He was, however, both a director and shareholder at MEA Business Solutions, which was set up in 2014.
Acra has also barred MEA Business Consultancy from acting as a registered filing agent (RFA) from March 8 this year to March 7, 2023.
Acra added: "Cancellation is the most severe measure in the RFA framework introduced in 2015.
"This is the first time Acra has cancelled the registration of a filing agent for anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism breaches."
In its statement, Acra said: "RFAs play an important role as gatekeepers to prevent illicit activities in the business ecosystem.
"RFAs must exercise due diligence and ensure internal policies, practices and controls are in place to guard against money laundering and financing of terrorism."
On Wednesday, the court heard that both Tang and Koryagin will be appealing against their convictions and sentences.
For each count of cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to three years and fined.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man threatened to leak intimate photos if ex-mistress didn't compensate him​

Wan Ting Koh
·Senior Reporter
13 September 2021·4-min read

A man's hands at his laptop. (PHOTO: Getty Images)
SINGAPORE — After a seven-year extra-marital relationship with a woman he first hired as an escort ended, a man demanded that she return him a year’s worth of allowance, then threatened to disseminate intimate videos and photos that were taken without her knowledge.
Chua Joo Kwang, who is married with two sons, was sentenced to seven months' jail on Monday (13 September) after he pleaded guilty to one count each of insulting the victim’s modesty and criminal intimidation, with one count of stalking considered for sentencing.
Chua, 57, and the woman, 46, are both Malaysians and Singapore permanent residents. The woman cannot be named to protect her identity.
In 2011, Chua engaged the woman for escort services. He then had an affair with her, providing her a monthly allowance of $2,500 before their relationship ended in December 2018.
After their relationship ended however, Chua continued harassing the woman over the next three months, sending her some 50 text messages via the WeChat mobile application. He kept insisting on meeting her and also asked her to return him one year of her allowance, which amounted to $30,000, as compensation for the break-up.
Chua also impersonated his own anonymous “friend” to threaten the woman. He used a mobile application to generate a fake number with a US country code in December 2018 in order to achieve his ends.
Between 10 and 16 February 2019, the woman began to receive text messages from an anonymous individual using a foreign number. The individual claimed to be “M”, a friend of Chua’s. In these messages, “M” pestered the woman to meet Chua in order to pay the latter compensation.
As the woman ignored the messages, “M” sent her three intimate photos of herself with Chua. “M” threatened to leak the compromising photos if she continued to ignore the messages.
On 13 February 2019, “M” sent the woman two photographs – one showed her nude, and the other depicted her performing oral sex on Chua.
He then sent the message, “Now I only send photos to you... maybe soon I might send more photos to your family and friends? Better you meet your bf soon to settle what he wants from you. You better satisfy him, make him happy and make sure it ends on his terms! Better for you that way. If your bf is happy, I am happy and there will be NO PROBLEM for you.”

Accused recorded her in sexual acts without her knowledge​

After Chua’s identity was ascertained, the police raided his home and seized his laptop and mobile phone. The authorities found eight sexual videos involving Chua and the woman. These were all taken on 6 July 2018 without the woman’s knowledge.
Chua would film the intimate moments with a hidden recording device and without the woman’s consent.
The prosecution sought eight months’ jail for Chua, whom it said had been motivated by a “degree of malice and greed” having “involved the prospect” of public humiliation to terrorise the woman into submitting to him.
Chua had also abused his position as her boyfriend to take illicit videos of her and had cruelly suggested to send them to family and friends, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Huo Jiongrui.
Chua appeared in person, having had his lawyer Ramesh Tiwary discharge himself at the start of the proceedings. Tiwary told the court that he should not participate in the hearing as Chua had not been able to give him clear instructions.
Reading from a note, Chua said in mitigation that he had pleaded guilty, which ensured that the victim did not have to testify in court. He added that he regretted his offence, which was “out of character” and promised not to re-offend with the support of his family.
“I betrayed my wife and two sons,” he said. He also cited his clean record and pointed to a Buddhism practice which will “guide (him) on the right path”.
“I have been in a mental prison for the last 13 months and I don’t want to suffer again,” he added.
For insulting the modesty of a woman, Chua could have been jailed up to a year, or fined, or both.
For committing criminal intimidation, he could have been jailed up to two years, or fined, or both.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man jailed 1 year for snatch theft of 72-year-old coffee shop assistant’s gold necklace

By LOUISA TANG
Published SEPTEMBER 14, 2021


While riding home on his motorcycle, Ruben Supramaniam saw from afar that a man at a coffee shop was wearing a gold necklace around his neck and decided to steal it.

SINGAPORE — A 28-year-old man was jailed for a year on Tuesday (Sept 14) for stealing a 72-year-old coffee shop assistant’s gold necklace earlier this year.

Ruben Supramaniam pleaded guilty to one charge of snatch theft and was given the minimum jail term for the offence. He has been remanded since shortly after he struck on July 30.

The Malaysian was a work permit holder and worked in a hotel kitchen at the time, the court heard.

His victim, Mr Ngoh Teck King, helped out at the drinks stall at Kimly Coffeeshop located at Block 1 Upper Aljunied Lane. He worked the night shift from 10.30pm to 7am.

At about 3am, Ruben was riding home on his motorcycle when he noticed Mr Ngoh sitting alone there. He saw from afar that Mr Ngoh wore a gold necklace around his neck and decided to steal it.

He first rode back home at a nearby Housing and Development Board flat. He retrieved two black T-shirts and hid them underneath his white shirt in the elevator, knowing there were police cameras there.

He then walked over to the coffee shop, wrapping one of the black T-shirts around his head to conceal his face.

He put the second black T-shirt over his white one, intending to discard it afterwards to further conceal his identity and evade capture, the court heard.

Ruben got to the coffee shop at about 3.40am while Mr Ngoh was making coffee for a customer. Ruben then snuck into the drinks stall, grabbed Mr Ngoh’s gold necklace from the back and pulled hard.

The force he used caused the necklace chain to break.

Ruben then ran towards the back of a nearby neighbourhood police centre, taking off the black T-shirts he was wearing and discarding them.

Mr Ngoh called the police to report the theft. He did not suffer any injuries.

Ruben handed the gold necklace to his friend, who pawned it at a pawn shop at Marsiling MRT Station for S$1,000.

This sum and the necklace, which was worth about S$2,500, were later recovered.

The police previously said that officers from Tanglin Police Division had established Ruben’s identity through ground enquiries and with the help of images from closed-circuit television and police cameras.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Bryan Joel Lim sought the sentence imposed, saying Ruben had readily confessed to his crime and “provided substantial details”, leading police officers to where he had discarded the black T-shirts.

For snatch theft, he could have been jailed for between one and seven years, and caned.