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FALSE CLAIMS: Teo helped foreign women extend their stays illegally by writing letters to the immigration authorities that claimed they were required to remain here for investigations. -- ST PHOTO: AZIZ HUSSIN
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POLICE officer Daniel Teo Guan Koon was jailed four years yesterday for corruption and forgery.
The 35-year-old police veteran had on Monday admitted taking $26,500 from 53 foreign women in exchange for writing letters which helped them extend their stay here illegally.
He was also ordered to pay a penalty of $26,500. If he is unable to do so, he will have to spend an additional four months in jail.
Teo, who had been commended for his efforts in cracking several murder cases and a kidnapping, appeared downcast when District Judge Liew Thiam Leng gave his sentence.
In arriving at his decision, the judge said he had noted Teo's contributions to the police force. 'However, the nature of the offences committed are very serious, more so because he is a law enforcement officer. He has abused his position and has obtained a certain degree of benefit from the actions,' the judge said.
The court heard how Teo, who had 13 years' experience in the force, pocketed the tidy sum from the women over three months.
He would pen letters to the immigration authorities claiming that the women were required to remain in Singapore for investigations.
However, he had no authority to write those letters.
Moreover, the women were not even involved in the investigations cited.
His friend, lorry driver Eric Au, had allegedly found several Vietnamese and Chinese nationals who were willing to pay between $700 and $900 each to prolong their stay here illegally.
Of the amount, $500 would go to Teo.
Teo would then prepare the letters, using actual report numbers used for classifying and identifying various police reports.
In the letters, he would claim the women were witnesses to murders or cases of unnatural deaths such as suicides, and their help was needed in ongoing investigations.
He would then take the letters to the ICA Building to obtain the special immigration passes before handing them over to Mr Au.
His lawyer Christopher Bridges had urged leniency, saying that Teo had cooperated with the authorities.
Speaking to The Straits Times just before the sentence was handed to him, Teo said he was remorseful.
'I am very sorry for what I did. It was the wrong thing to do and I should not have done it,' he said.
He could have been jailed for up to seven years for forgery and five years for corruption.
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