SINGAPORE: A woman who was found to be part of a Cambodia-based scam group believed to be behind S$52.5 million (US$41.33 million) in losses from victims in Singapore has been jailed for two years and one month.
This comes after the end of De Villar Rizalyn Panganiban’s trial on Aug 24, which saw her convicted of two charges after Principal District Judge Thian Yee Sze found the prosecution had made out its case.
The judge said the overriding sentencing consideration in De Villar’s case was general deterrence, especially given the transnational reach of the organised crime group involved in this case.
She added that the sentence had to be substantial enough to deter those tempted to become involved in similar activities.
The Filipina, 35, had claimed trial to charges including one for being a member of a locally linked organised criminal group, and another for engaging in criminal conspiracy with members of the group to cheat people in Singapore through government official impersonation scams.
The court heard that she had arrived at the Cambodian scam compound on March 29, 2025, after being lured by the promise of financial gains. She remained at the compound until April 24, 2025, when she was asked to go to another scam compound in Laos.
Prosecutors had sought a jail term of not less than 27 months for De Villar, arguing that she had been part of a highly sophisticated and organised criminal group, to the extent that law enforcement agencies continue to face difficulties apprehending the high-level members of the syndicate who remain on the run.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Yeo Kee Hwan said the group had a three-layer structure, with members playing distinct roles ranging from bank officers to government officials, and employed various props such as artificial intelligence rendering, uniforms and backdrops resembling Singapore’s government agencies.
“The money-laundering aspect of the group was itself a distinct and equally sophisticated operation involving mule accounts, runners and cryptocurrency. Criminal proceeds were layered and converted to cryptocurrency in order to anonymise the transfers,” said DPP Yeo.
The prosecution said that De Villar had joined the group for financial gain but accepted that she had not successfully scammed any victims as she had failed a test set by the syndicate.
De Villar, together with nine Singaporeans and two Malaysians, was charged on Sept 11, 2025, after being arrested by officers from the Singapore Police Force (SPF) on Sept 9, 2025.
On Oct 29, 2025, warrants of arrest were issued against a further 27 Singaporeans and seven Malaysians for their roles in the same scam group.
“This was a well-oiled machinery of 78 members who all worked towards the goal of cheating Singaporeans,” said DPP Yeo.
The court heard that the total figure of 78 members in the criminal syndicate, with total losses of around S$52.5 million, was provided by an SPF investigating officer during his testimony at the trial.
Despite claiming trial to the charges, the prosecutor noted De Villar should still be afforded a three-month sentencing discount as she had provided significant information about the syndicate, including identifying other members.
The group is said to have been involved in at least 528 reported scam cases between Sept 3, 2024, and Sept 5, 2025.
De Villar’s lawyer, Chooi Jing Yen, had argued for a global jail term of 18 months, including a three-month discount for her cooperation in investigations.
He said that while the losses caused by the group between September 2024 and September 2025 have been placed at around S$52.5 million, these cannot be fully attributed to De Villar as Chooi argued that De Villar had essentially done nothing other than be in the scam centre.
In the raid on Sept 9, 2025, electronic devices and equipment believed to have been used by the syndicate, which was secretly operating out of a scam centre in Cambodia, were found by the Cambodian National Police, which simultaneously raided a building and a warehouse in Phnom Penh.
On Aug 24, the judge said De Villar had not been coerced or forced into committing any of the offences, and that she had ample opportunity to attempt to escape while at the Cambodian call centre.
“She had a substantial amount of freedom and could have left the call premises or obtained help if she wanted… or at least tried to leave the compound. She had her phone with her,” said the judge.
After the joint operations on Sept 9, 2025, SPF issued a statement saying more than S$2.5 million in funds from bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets, 53 electronic devices, copies of scam scripts and victims’ records were seized after it began receiving reports of government official impersonation scams in December 2024.
On June 26, Yip Chee Ming, 30, one of the Malaysians who was arrested, was sentenced to 16 months and two weeks’ jail after pleading guilty to one count of being a member of an organised crime syndicate. - The Straits Times/ANN
