SINGAPORE: A woman who was a "key player" in a fraudulent scheme that offered employment passes to foreigners through sham work arrangements in exchange for "investments" has been jailed.
Wang Jue, a 43-year-old woman identified as a Singapore citizen in court documents, received 10 weeks' jail on Tuesday (Jul 14) for conspiring to make a false statement in a declaration form for an employment pass.
She had contested the charge, but was convicted. The judge found that the investment agreement was a sham paying no real returns, with the employment pass the only tangible benefit.
One Chinese national, hoping to obtain Singapore PR status, paid S$360,000 (US$278,970) as an "investment" in what turned out to be a sham job arrangement. The company in Singapore received the "investment" in exchange for providing the Chinese national with an employment pass.
Wang was previously named in court papers in a case of another Chinese national who paid S$1 million in "investment" hoping to obtain Singapore permanent residency.
Wang had abetted two men, Zhang Qingqiao and Ang Sek Chai, to make a false statement that Zhang would be employed by Ang's company, MW Dynamics.
In his testimony, Zhang described how he had been introduced to Wang as an immigration agent who could help him immigrate to Singapore.
He described how she provided an "immigration investment proposal" in the form of PowerPoint slides titled "Singapore Equity Investment Immigration Proposal", which outlined the steps to apply for PR status in Singapore and contained investment proposals.
He signed an agreement for an investment of S$360,000, with a fixed dividend of S$10,000 per month for 36 months, and the provision for MW to grant him an employment pass.
Despite not working for MW, Zhang received monthly "salaries" of S$10,000 from MW for 13 months, which he said was payment of his principal investment sum and dividends for his "investment".
Wang's lawyer had argued that his client was a middleman who would assist clients with high net-worth to become permanent residents in Singapore, and to "assist entrepreneurs to invest in and incorporate companies in Singapore".
In sentencing, District Judge Tan Jen Tse said the scheme was sophisticated, involving locating a Singapore company to take part.
False documents were also created, and the deception continued over a long period of about a year and a half.
While he disagreed with the prosecution that Wang was the mastermind and main mover of the scheme, he found that she was a key player.
For conspiring to make a false statement in an employment pass declaration form, she could have been jailed for up to two years and fined up to S$20,000.
Wang is appealing against her conviction and her sentence.
Source: CNA/ll(gr)