Prosecution files appeal against ex-tour guide Yang Yin's 'manifestly inadequate' 6-year jail sentence

The prosecution has filed an appeal against the six-year jail sentence given to Yang Yin (centre) for criminal breach of trust. PHOTO: ST FILE

SINGAPORE - The prosecution has filed an appeal against former tour guide Yang Yin's six-year jail sentence for criminal breach of trust, calling it "manifestly inadequate", the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) said in a statement on Monday (Oct 3).

The 42-year-old Chinese national was handed the sentence on Friday for misappropriating $1.1 million entrusted to him by wealthy Singaporean widow Chung Khin Chun.

Yang had pleaded guilty in August to the two criminal breach of trust charges of misappropriating the money from Madam Chung, 89, in 2010 and 2012.

"Having carefully reviewed the Principal District Judge's written grounds of decision, the Public Prosecutor is of the view that the six-year imprisonment sentence imposed for the criminal breach of trust offences is manifestly inadequate," said the AGC statement.

"The sentence does not adequately reflect the true criminality of Yang's conduct."

The statement added that there were two "distinctive features" of the case which the sentencing court had not given adequate consideration to.

The first was that Yang was a foreigner who came to Singapore for the objective of committing criminal acts, while the second was that he took advantage of a vulnerable elderly person, and failed to disclose the full extent of his criminality.

Yang also did not return any portion of the misappropriated monies and has not shown any remorse, the statement said.

The prosecution had asked for a jail term of 10 to 12 years as a deterrent sentence in order to send a message that any misuse of funds entrusted by vulnerable persons will be severely dealt with.

Yang was also sentenced to 26 months' jail last Thursday for a slew of offences, including falsifying payment receipts to his bogus company and duping the authorities into granting him permanent resident status.

Both sentences were due to run consecutively.

Madam Chung's niece Hedy Mok, who started legal proceedings against Yang in 2014, had said she was planning to appeal against Yang's six-year jail sentence.

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