Woman allegedly duped victim of $130k, claiming money needed for Lee Kuan Yew

SINGAPORE - A dishwasher allegedly duped a man of at least $130,000, claiming that the payments were needed for a Mr Lee Kuan Yew.

Tan Hwee Ngo, 69, allegedly committed the offences between 1999 and 2013.

On the first day of Tan's trial on Wednesday (Jan 9), Senior Investigation Officer (SIO) Manoj Kalwani testified that she was the mastermind of the ruse.

He also said another woman, Madam Boo Sok Hiang, acted as a "middleman" to collect the money from the man, petrol station pump attendant Tan Soy Kiang, 74.

SIO Kalwani told District Judge Terence Tay that Madam Boo would then hand over the cash to Tan.

He added: "She had cheated the victim by coming up with a scheme, that he had to pay money to Lee Kuan Yew.

"He had paid her from his CPF savings and monthly salary for quite some time."

It was not mentioned in court if the Mr Lee whom Tan had allegedly been referring to was Singapore's late founding prime minister.

Ta n is now accused of 169 cheating charges and all of them have been proceeded against her.

When examined by Deputy Public Prosecutor Thiam Jia Min, SIO Kalwani testified that he was alerted about the case on Feb 5, 2015, and officers recorded statements from the two women later that day.

The court heard that Madam Boo said in her statement she had also handed over her own cash to Tan, after she allegedly convinced her to take part in some purported investments.

Madam Boo stated that even though she did not receive any returns, she continued handing over her money to Tan.

The court heard that Madam Boo, 71, died of a heart disease, on April 21, 2016.

The trial resumes on Wednesday afternoon.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.