A 28-year-old man, Tan Ming Chuan, was sentenced to four months and eight weeks’ jail and fined $300 after pleading guilty to charges of criminal intimidation and misusing a computer system in connection with an illegal bank account scheme.
Tan Ming Chuan and his alleged accomplice, Cheong Wee Kiat, 26, believed that the 25-year-old male victim who’s name is redacted from court documents, which referred to him as A1 had taken the money from the account.
According to The Starits Times report, Cheong Wee Kiat’s case still pending.
The court heard that Tan Ming Chuan, who knew a person named Derrick since late 2021, accepted a job offer to recruit individuals willing to relinquish their bank accounts for illegal purposes.
Derrick would pay Tan between $800 and $1,000 in cash for each bank account he provided. Tan would then give $500 to the account relinquisher and keep approximately $300 as his commission.
In March 2022, the victim, a 25-year-old male referred to as A1 in court documents, told Cheong, then his friend, that he wanted to earn “fast cash.”
Cheong subsequently introduced him to Tan.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Nicole Tay stated that Tan indicated he might give Cheong a commission if A1’s bank account could be used over a long period.
Later that month, the three men met in Tampines.
Tan helped A1 to register a company and opened a corporate bank account online. A1 then handed over his banking credentials and ATM card linked to the account, which Tan passed to Derrick, knowing that Derrick would utilize the account for illegal activities.
Over the course of the scheme, more than $147,000 was received and transferred out of the account. Court documents revealed that neither Cheong nor A1 received the promised payments for their roles. Tan, however, received a commission from Derrick, which he spent on alcohol and clubbing, according to Straits Times.
In April 2022, A1’s father noticed suspicious transactions involving significant sums from unknown sources on the bank statements linked to the account. After confronting his son and visiting the bank to close the account, A1 lodged a police report, admitting he had opened and relinquished the aaccount
The bank froze the account, which contained over $25,000 at the time.
Fearing repayment obligations for the frozen funds, A1 cut ties with Cheong shortly thereafter.
Subsequently, on September 12, 2022, Tan and Cheong met at Cheong’s Bedok Reservoir home and decided to confront A1 about the money owed.
Later that evening, they met A1 and four others at a void deck. When A1 claimed he did not have the money, Cheong punched him in the face, causing a cut near his left eyebrow.
A1 did not retaliate out of fear.
While waiting for a friend to transfer additional funds—later amounting to $800—Cheong and Tan devised a cruel punishment. They took turns urinating into a bottle and then forced A1 to drink about three-quarters of the urine, threatening him either to consume it or fight them.
A1, fearing violence, drank the urine and was ordered to pour the rest over his head. He complied.
Tan also used his mobile phone to record the incident but later deleted the footage, according to the report.
A1 filed a police report on September 14, 2022, leading to investigations. Tan’s bail was set at $20,000 on August 6, and he is expected to begin serving his sentence on September 1.
Cheong’s case remains pending.
Image via google for illustration
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