Woman faces 85 counts of cheating involving $2 million

SINGAPORE - A 53-year-old woman has been hauled to court after she allegedly cheated four people of some $2 million.

Leong Lai Yee, who was charged with one count of cheating on Nov 4, was handed 84 more similar charges on Friday (Nov 10).

Leong, who is believed to be a former property agent, is accused of cheating each victim of between $28,000 and $772,733.

She is said to have committed her offences between January 2014 and April 2015.

She allegedly started her crime spree by cheating one Mr Ong Jiak Jin of $46,450 on Jan 7, 2014. She was said to have deceived him into believing that she would use the monies he invested through her to finance the purchase of distressed properties in Singapore.

As a result, he purportedly delivered the money to four different bank accounts that day.
From Jan 2014 to Dec 31 that year, she purportedly cheated Mr Ong of a total of $772,733 by using similar methods.

She also allegedly cheated three women, Ms Iris Tan Jit Tian, Ms Tan Siew Hoon and Ms Jenny Lim Siew Choo of $771,233, $488,375 and $28,000 respectively.

On Friday, Deputy Public Prosecutor Kenneth Chin told the court that Leong may face more charges in the future.

Leong, who was unrepresented, is now remanded at Changi Women's Prison and will be back in court on Nov 17.

If convicted of cheating, she can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined for each charge.

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.