Singapore Police Force (SPF) Sixth Man Sentenced For Forgery And Money Laundering Offences In Anti-Money Laundering Probe

Sixth Man Sentenced For Forgery And Money Laundering Offences In Anti-Money Laundering Probe

On 14 May 2024, Vang Shuiming (“Vang”), a 43-year-old Turkish national, was convicted and sentenced to 13 months and six weeks’ imprisonment for one count of fraudulently using a forged document, an offence under Section 471 read with Section 465 of the Penal Code (“the Penal Code”), and two counts of money laundering under Section 55 of the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (“CDSA”). An additional 19 charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.

Vang was one of the 10 foreign nationals arrested on 15 August 2023, during a large scale, island-wide raid conducted by Police in relation to its investigations into a group of foreign nationals suspected of laundering the proceeds of their overseas organised crime activities into Singapore. During his arrest, Vang was found in possession of cash and other assets which were suspected to be proceeds from criminal conduct.

The Police subsequently seized and prohibited disposal of about S$199 million worth of assets in relation to Vang, his wife and their companies. The State Court has ordered the forfeiture of about S$179 million (about 90 per cent) of the assets to the State.

Background of the case

Investigations revealed that between 2021 and 2022, Vang submitted a forged bank statement and forged financial statements of three China-incorporated companies to various financial institutions in Singapore, in response to queries from the financial institutions and to substantiate his source of funds and wealth. In relation to Citibank’s query on payments into his Citibank account, Vang submitted a forged bank statement from China Merchant Bank purportedly in his name even though he did not have any China Merchant Bank account. Vang also represented to Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd and UOB Kay Hian Pte Ltd that his wealth was derived from the profits generated by his three companies and provided the forged financial statements of various years.

Vang admitted to having used as genuine falsified financial books of accounts in relation to his business in China, as part of an arrangement to move funds from overseas to Singapore. In the course of investigations, Vang was unable to provide a satisfactory explanation as to the source and provenance of the balances in four local bank accounts in his name, which amounted to more than S$ 2.4 million. In his initial statements to the Police, Vang claimed that the source of funds was from his loan business in China, but later claimed that the funds originated from his gambling winnings and profits derived from real estate investments in Philippines instead. He did not substantiate this latter claim.

Vang was charged with the following offences:

Eighteen counts of fraudulently using as genuine a document which he knew to be a forged document under the Penal Code; and
Four counts of money laundering offences under the CDSA.

Any person who is convicted of an offence under Section 471 read with Section 465 of the Penal Code may be punished with imprisonment for a term of up to 4 years, or with fine, or with both. Any person convicted of an offence under Section 55 of the CDSA may be punished with a fine of up to S$150,000 or with imprisonment for a term of up to 3 years, or with both.

The Police take a serious stance against any person who may be involved in money laundering and deception using forged documents that compromises the integrity of Singapore’s financial system. The Police will also continue to take tough enforcement actions against perpetrators, who will be dealt with in accordance with the law.

Related cases

Five of the accused persons arrested during the same raid: Su Wenqiang, a 32-year-old Cambodian national; Su Haijin, a 41-year-old Cypriot national; Wang Baosen, a 32-year-old Chinese national; Su Baolin, a 42-year-old Cambodian national, and Zhang Ruijin, a 45-year-old Chinese national, were convicted and sentenced for money laundering offences last month. Annex A sets out the sentencing outcomes of the six accused persons who have been convicted and sentenced so far in relation to this case.

Court proceedings for the remaining four accused persons related to the case are ongoing. Annex B sets out the offences which they have currently been charged with. Their assets, along with those of other persons linked to the case, will remain seized and prohibited until the State Courts have dealt with their cases.

Annex A – Sentencing outcomes of six accused persons

SN	Name	Sentencing outcome
1	Su Wenqiang	Convicted and sentenced to 13 months’ imprisonment for two counts of money laundering under Section 54(1) of the CDSA. 100 per cent forfeiture of seized assets (amounting to around S$6 million) to the State.
2	Su Haijin	Convicted and sentenced to 14 months’ imprisonment for one count of resistance to lawful apprehension under Section 225B of the Penal Code and two counts of money laundering under Section 55 of the CDSA. About 95 per cent forfeiture of seized/prohibited assets (amounting to more than S$165 million) to the State.
3	Wang Baosen	Convicted and sentenced to 13 months’ imprisonment for two counts of money laundering under Section 55 of the CDSA. 100 per cent forfeiture of seized/prohibited assets (amounting to about S$8 million) to the State.
4	Su Baolin	Convicted and sentenced to 14 months' imprisoment for one count of abetting another to make false representations under Section 424A read with Section 109 of the Penal Code and two counts of money laundering under Section 55 of the CDSA, with the remaining charges taken into consideration for sentencing. About 90 per cent forfetiure of seized/prohibited assets (amounting to $65 million) to the State.
5	Zhang Ruijin	Convicted and sentenced to 15 months' imprisoment for two count of fraudulently using a forged document under Section 471 read with Section 465 of the Penal Code and one counts of money laundering under Section 47AA of the CDSA. About 90 per cent forfetiure of seized/prohibited assets (amounting to $118 million) to the State.
6	Vang Shuiming	Convicted and sentenced to 13 months' and six weeks imprisoment for one count of fraudulently using a forged documents under Section 471 read with Section 465 of the Penal Code and two counts of money laundering under Section 55 of the CDSA About 90 per cent forfetiure of seized/prohibited assets (amounting to $179 million) to the State.

Annex B – List of current charges against remaining four accused persons

SN	Name	Details of offences
1	Cheng Qingyuan (10 charges)	Four counts of Section 54(1)(c) CDSA for offences of money laundering; Two counts of Section 468 Penal Code read with Section 109 of the same act for offences of abetment of forgery for the purpose of cheating; Two counts of Section 471 Penal Code punishable under Section 465 read with Section 109 of the same act for offences of abetment of using as genuine forged electronic record; and Two counts of Section 465 Penal Code read with Section 109 of the same act for offences of abetment of forgery.
2	Lin Baoying (3 charges)	Two counts of Section 468 Penal Code for offences of forgery for the purpose of cheating; and One count of Section 204A Penal Code for offence of perverting course of justice.
3	Su Jianfeng (6 charges)	Four counts of Section 54(1)(c) CDSA for offences of money laundering; and Two counts of Section 468 Penal Code for offences of forgery for the purpose of cheating.
4	Wang Dehai (2 charges)	One count of Section 54(1)(c) CDSA and one count of Section 47(1)(b) CDSA for offences of money laundering.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
14 May 2024 @ 5:45 PM