SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN): A former manager with DBS Bank has admitted to cheating seven victims, including his own uncle, of nearly S$1.4 million (RM4.34 in total.
The bulk of the money was used to fund an online gambling habit and pay for his wedding and renovations.
Court documents showed the largest sum of money Benjamin Chung Hiang Wee took was from his 62-year-old uncle, an odd-job worker.
In total, the 32-year-old duped his uncle into transferring $441,850 to Chung’s bank accounts.
The former wealth planning manager, whose job scope included recommending and selling financial products from insurance company Manulife (Singapore), had convinced his uncle that he could earn between 4 and 5 per cent in interest rate if he invested in a “two-year fixed deposit scheme”.
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Joseph Gwee said: “In truth, the whole fixed deposit scheme never existed, and (Chung) used the money... to support his online gambling.
“He had no intention of opening a fixed deposit account for (his uncle).”
His uncle transferred $260,000 to Chung’s account between October 2022 to April 2023, and another $181,850 between December 2023 and April 2024.
His unsuspecting uncle had diverted his investments from another bank to support his nephew, only to find out later that he had been cheated.
The DPP said: “As a result of the incident, (the uncle) was unable to sleep for the whole month, and was advised to see a psychiatrist, but did not do so.
“Family dynamics have also changed – he has been called ‘stupid’ for trusting the accused, and (the uncle) is now distant with the accused’s mother.”
The court heard that he used similar scams on multiple occasions between February 2022 and April 2024 to cheat the other victims.
His offences came to light in 2024 when the police learnt that Chung had misused the bank’s name to obtain money from various customers over purported loans and fixed deposit schemes.
He surrendered himself to the authorities on May 6, 2024, and was arrested soon after.
He has since returned more than $231,000 to five of the victims, including his uncle.
Chung, who started working as a wealth planning manager in January 2019, had his employment terminated in November 2023 after he breached certain undisclosed regulatory requirements as a financial adviser.
He pleaded guilty in April to six counts of cheating linked to five victims, who were duped into handing over more than $1 million. Each victim had transferred between $66,550 and $441,800 to him.
He also admitted to dealing with the benefits of crime. On at least 32 occasions between April 2023 and April 2024, Chung transferred more than $823,000 of his ill-gotten gains from his bank accounts to other accounts.
Multiple other charges will be considered when he is sentenced on May 25. -- The Straits Times/Asia News Network
