No-bail request for Singaporean linked to Cambodia-based scam syndicate due to high flight risk
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The police prosecutor added that Wayne Soh You Chen had strong links with the syndicate’s masterminds.
PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
Follow topic:
- The prosecution asked for no bail to be offered for Wayne Soh You Chen, due to him being a flight risk and his syndicate links.
- Another alleged syndicate member Brian Sie Eng Fa will remain in remand as investigations continue into the $41 million scam affecting 438 victims.
- Twenty-five other Singaporeans and six Malaysians remain wanted, with one Malaysian already charged over his alleged links to the syndicate.
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SINGAPORE – The prosecution has asked that no bail be offered to one of the two Singaporean men charged with being a scam caller in a Cambodia-based scam syndicate.
At a court mention on Dec 1 for Wayne Soh You Chen, 27, a police prosecutor said this was because his charge under the Organised Crime Act (OCA) is non-bailable, and he is a high flight risk.
The police prosecutor added that Soh had strong links with the syndicate’s masterminds.
He said: “There’s also reason to believe that the syndicate leaders, who are still at large, (are) likely to reach out and collude with the accused... if he is on bail.”
Soh, along with Brian Sie Eng Fa, 32, were charged on Nov 17
Court documents state the two men were allegedly scam callers at a call centre and committed their offences in Cambodia on or around Sept 9.
The Phnom Penh-based syndicate allegedly ran government official impersonation scams targeting victims in Singapore, and the pair were among 34 suspects wanted
Their activities were disrupted during a joint operation by the SPF and the Cambodian National Police on Sept 9.
The prosecutor said Soh fled the compound before police raided it over scam activities, and he was eventually arrested and deported to Singapore.
SPF said on Nov 16 that Soh and Sie were nabbed by foreign police in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and Khon Kaen, Thailand, respectively.
Noting that Soh was living in Cambodia with his wife and daughter, the prosecutor said he can survive outside Singapore.
“His means of sustenance include... cryptocurrency, through the syndicate, which is hard to trace,” said the prosecutor.
Given the size and scope of the case, and the money involved, the prosecutor urged the court not to grant him bail.
Soh’s lawyer Gino Hardial Singh, who also represents Sie, said Soh surrendered to the authorities in Cambodia and was not on the run.
The lawyer added that he would apply for a bail review for both men at an appropriate time.
As for Sie, the prosecutor sought to remand him for another week, as investigations were taking longer because of the complicated nature of syndicated operations.
Sie will have his next court mention on Dec 8, while Soh’s case is scheduled for a pre-trial conference on Dec 19.
Both men, who attended court via video link, remained stoic during court proceedings.
Twenty-five other Singaporeans and six Malaysians remain wanted by the Singapore police over their alleged links to the organised crime group.
One of the Malaysian fugitives, Bernard Goh Yie Shen, 24, was arrested by the Cambodian National Police in Phnom Penh
Goh was charged here on Nov 18 with overseeing the operations of a call centre that targeted and cheated victims in Singapore.
The scam syndicate was allegedly run by fugitive Singaporean Ng Wei Liang
Other purported syndicate members were charged in September under the OCA.
For each charge under the OCA, an offender can be jailed for up to five years, fined up to $100,000, or both.
SPF had earlier urged anyone with information on the suspects’ whereabouts to call its hotline on 1800-255-0000 (or +65-6255-0000 for overseas callers) or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness
All information received will be kept strictly confidential.
