Woman jailed 5 months for cheating and fraud

SINGAPORE : A former spa employee was sentenced to five months’ jail for cheating and fraud.

Wong Yee Fong, 35, admitted to 26 counts of criminal breach of trust and cheating, amounting to about S$14,800.

The prosecution proceeded with eight of the charges, while the rest were taken into consideration.

The court heard that Wong resorted to cheating to pay for money owed to SingTel and unlicensed moneylenders.

She would ask taxi drivers to lend her their phones during the rides and then flee with the phones.

She cheated 11 cabbies of their phones between May 2011 and May this year.

She then sold the phones for cash to pay off her debts.

Wong never paid for her cab rides.

The mother of two also admitted to cheating goldsmith shops, amongst other things.

In mitigation, defence lawyer Louis Lim told the court that Wong has no excuse for her behaviour but said she was driven by desperation and depression.

Mr Lim said Wong, who has lost her job since she was remanded, was penniless after her divorce proceedings.

Describing Wong as extremely remorseful, the lawyer said his client’s problems were worsened by her failed marriage.

In pleading for leniency, he said Wong wants to take care of her aged mother and school—going children after serving her jail term.

But Deputy Public Prosecutor Nicholas Ngoh pointed out that Wong has had previous cases of theft and cheating.

He added that Wong’s repeated offences showed a complete disregard of the law.

The district judge took the factors into account and sentenced Wong to five months in jail.

— CNA/ms