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 |
|
|
|
2 |
|
|
|
3 |
|
|
| 4 | Su Baolin |
|
| 5 | Zhang Ruijin |
|
| 6 | Vang Shuiming |
|
Annex B – List of current charges against remaining four accused persons
|
SN |
Name |
Details of offences |
|
1 |
Cheng Qingyuan (10 charges) |
|
|
2 |
Lin Baoying (3 charges) |
|
|
3 |
Su Jianfeng (6 charges) |
|
|
4 |
Wang Dehai (2 charges) |
|
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
14 May 2024 @ 5:45 PM