SINGAPORE: A woman agreed to meet a man she met online for sex in exchange for S$400 (US$312), but later said she could not go through with it as her period had started.
Despite being paid S$150 for her "time", the 23-year-old woman asked the man for more money.
When the man ignored her, the woman posed as a fictitious, angry older brother and lied that she was only 17, threatening to report him for underage sex unless he paid up.
Fearing exposure, the man transferred money multiple times, totalling S$8,100, before finally lodging a police report.
Chang Wai Chain, now aged 24, was sentenced to 11 months' jail on Monday (Sep 15). She pleaded guilty to one count of cheating, which the prosecutor stressed could have been extortion had the charge not been amended.
THE CASE
The court heard that Chang had been on the online Sugarbook platform, which connects "sugar daddies" and "sugar babies", as a 23-year-old female named "Jasmine".
The victim, a 51-year-old man, contacted her via Telegram and they agreed to meet at his home for sex.
On Apr 4, 2024, they met as arranged. She had a soft drink, chatted briefly with the man, then said she would not have sex because of her period. The man gave her S$150, instead of the agreed S$400, and no sexual acts took place.
The next night, Chang contacted the victim, saying she had lost the S$150 and wanted more for a party. The victim agreed and sent her S$200 via PayNow.
When she later demanded more money and he refused, she pretended to be her own brother. In messages sent to the victim on Apr 8 and Apr 9 last year, she lied about her age and told him he had committed a crime by offering to have paid sex with a 17-year-old.
Eventually, she threatened to report him to the police and expose him on social media. He initially paid her S$3,000 and she kept pressing for more over several days.
The victim finally lodged a police report on Apr 11, 2024, as he feared the demands for money would not cease.
INVESTIGATIONS
In total, he was cheated into transferring Chang S$8,100.
During police investigations, Chang lied repeatedly, claiming she did not have an agreement with the victim for paid sex and claiming that she had asked him for S$6,000 only because she felt he had taken advantage of her.
She also falsely claimed that a friend had sent the underage messages as a “joke” from her phone, and repeated this lie in six police statements between April and June last year.
Chang told the police she had spent the money on clothes, footwear, a bag, family meals, outings at a pub and garlands for a friend who worked at a nightspot - to help her hit her target.
Only S$800 was left in her bank account, and the money was given to the victim as partial restitution.
SENTENCING
The prosecutor sought twelve-and-a-half months' to fifteen-and-a-half months' jail for Chang, citing her premeditation and persistence.
The defence sought eight to 10 months instead, saying this was not a case where the offender cheated multiple victims, forged different documents or spun different stories.
"This is a young lady who gave in to temptation. She was immature and simply thought it was easy money. It was a poor decision," he said, adding that his client "is not a hardened criminal".
Source: CNA/ll