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Nov 12, 2007
Clerk jailed for helping man deposit $1.2 m into her accounts
She was paid $500 for each account and commission for each transaction
By Elena Chong, Court Correspondent
A WOMAN was jailed for three months on Monday for helping a man deposit $1.2 million worth of cheques into her bank accounts.
Sim Hwei Kian, 30, then withdrew $1.18 million and handed it over to 'Kevin' who had offered her $500 for each bank account opened and a further 0.5 per cent commission for each transaction.
After one year, 'Kevin'' also promised to give her $10,000 when the accounts were to be closed.
The Singapore Turf Club clerk, who was in financial trouble, agreed.
She had earlier posted messages on the Internet seeking financial loans. Among the many replies she got was one from 'Kevin'.
'Kevin' had also informed her that the bank accounts were to receive 4D and soccer bet collections, but in fact, the money had been misappropriated.
The four cheques had been cut from the cheque books of ConocoPhillips Asia Ventures and ConocoPhillips International and the signatures had been forged.
Sim pleaded guilty to a charge under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act which carries a fine of up to $200,000 or a jail term of up to seven years, or both.
On Sept 24, she deposited four cheques slotted under her door into her bank accounts. The total was $1.23 million.
Over the next two days, she withdrew the money totalling $1.18 million over seven occasions. She bundled them into bags and placed them at a staircase landing for 'Kevin' to collect.
On Sept 25, she withdrew $5,000 for her own use. This amount has been recovered.
Her lawyer, Mr Satwant Singh, said Sim was not the mastermind nor did she benefit from the crime.
Sim, who had failed her Primary School Leaving Examination twice, had never seen 'Kevin' at all. All she knew was that she was helping him with his illegal football bets.
Sim's sentence was backdated to Sept 28.
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Where got such good thing one .. ? now got to go to jail, not worth it ...!![/b]
