Duo jailed for providing foreigners with forged immigration materials
Two Singaporean men have been jailed for providing forged immigration documents and endorsements to foreigners.
Daniel Wong Yew Meng, 40, and Ong Tze Meng, 33, had provided the materials to at least five Chinese nationals, according to a news release from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA). Ong had also helped one of the foreigners to make false statements in her disembarkation forms.
Both men were sentenced on Tuesday (25 July), with Wong receiving an eight-month jail term and $16,000 fine, and Ong receiving a six-month jail term and $8,000 fine.
Started with an arrest
On 22 August 2016, ICA officers at Changi Airport arrested 36-year-old Chinese national Wang Fang while she was seeking departure immigration clearance. She was found to have two forged immigration endorsements in her passport along with a forged “Application of Extension of Short Term Visit Pass” document.
Investigations showed that she had obtained the endorsements and document from Wong and Ong sometime in July 2016 for $8,500.
ICA officers later visited Wang Fang’s residence, where they arrested two more female Chinese nationals – 27-year-old Tian Tian and 28-year-old Wang Juanjuan – after finding them to be overstayers. Both had paid Wong $8,500 each to obtain forged Singapore immigration endorsements and documents.
Separately, two more female Chinese nationals – 25-year-old Ao Chunju and 38-year-old Zhou Min – were arrested in an enforcement blitz on 23 August 2016. Ao was found to also be in possession of forged immigration materials, which she obtained from Wong sometime in July 2016 for $8,500. Both Ao and Zhou Min were also overstayers.
Ong, who was acquainted with Ao, had also helped the latter to falsely declare in her disembarkation forms that she would be staying at his residential address.
Another 32-year-old Chinese national, Xiao Suqiong, was also found to have obtained a similar set of forged materials from Ong for $5,000. She had surrendered herself to the ICA on 30 March 2016 and was also an overstayer.
Wong and Ong were subsequently arrested on 24 August 2016 and 2 September 2016, respectively.
A separate arrest of 37-year-old female Chinese national Wu Xiaomei was made on 24 November 2016, after she was found to have been harbouring Wang Fang, Tian Tian and Juanjuan. All seven female Chinese nationals involved in the case have been convicted and have served their sentences.
For abetting in the possession of forged immigration documents, Wong and Ong could have faced jail terms of up to 12 months, a fine of up to $4,000, or both, on each charge.
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