PUBLISHED ONUPDATEDBYSean LerFour men were charged in court on Tuesday (Nov 10) for their alleged involvement in a fraudulent mortgage scheme that involved the use of a professional violinist’s landed residential property along Swanage Road without his consent.
They were arrested during a two-day operation on April 14 and 15, after the victim discovered that a caveat had been lodged against his property in connection with a loan application that he had not authorised.
In all, they had attempted to cheat two credit companies — VM Capital and Comfort Credit — of $6.2 million.
Lazarus Ching Fei Fan, 27, was handed two counts of abetment of cheating, while 29-year-old Terence Tan Jun Ming was handed one count of the same charge.
Ching is said to have lured the violinist, Elgar Kwek Chong Hee, away from his home on two occasions under false pretences, while Tan facilitated access to the property for valuers to conduct property valuations.
Meanwhile, 36-year-old Andrew Li Xianneng is accused of making arrangements for a forged identity card to be produced.
He was handed one charge of abetting the unlawful issue of an identity card.
Ernest Fan Zhenhao, 39, received the most charges of the quartet. He is accused of impersonating the property owner and using forged identity documents to sign loan documents and obtaining property-related documents from law firms.
Fan was handed one count of possession of a forged identity car, two counts of abetment of cheating, and three counts of using as genuine a forged electronic record.
All four accused persons were not represented by lawyers when their charges were read out to them.
Among them, Tan indicated that he intends to plead guilty and seek legal representation. A pre-trial conference has been set for Nov 19.
This is usually held in chambers — before a judge away from the public and media — and involves the court and parties involved in a case.
It is intended to sort out administrative matters, including the scheduling of court dates.
All four individuals had their bail extended and the remaining three will have their respective cases heard in court again next month.
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