Two men, aged 43 and 48, were charged in court today for separate cases of cheating and forgery offences involving the COVID-19 Support Grant (“CSG”) and the Temporary Relief Fund (“TRF”). The CSG and TRF were launched to provide financial support to Singaporeans affected by the economic impact of COVID-19 and were administered by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (“MSF”).
The 43-year-old man was charged for allegedly attempting to cheat MSF into disbursing the CSG by falsely declaring in his application that he had lost his job due to COVID-19. He is also alleged to have submitted a forged retrenchment letter and provided additional false information to MSF to support the false declaration in his CSG application. MSF did not approve his CSG application.
The 48-year-old man was charged for allegedly cheating MSF into disbursing the $500 TRF payout by falsely declaring in his application that he had lost at least 30% of his income. The man was also charged for allegedly providing false information to an MSF officer regarding his TRF application.
If convicted, the two men face the following punishments:
- The offence of cheating under Section 420 of the Penal Code carries an imprisonment term of up to 10 years and a fine. The prescribed punishment for attempted cheating is the same;
- The offence of forgery for the purpose of cheating under Section 468 of the Penal Code carries an imprisonment term of up to 10 years and a fine; and
- The offence of giving false information to a public servant under Section 182 of the Penal Code carries an imprisonment term of up to two years, a fine, or both.
The Police take a serious view against any person involved in dishonest or fraudulent conduct pertaining to applications for Government grants. Offenders will be dealt with severely in accordance with the law.
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
29 January 2021 @ 10:30 AM