Singapore hands final offender in money laundering scandal longest jail sentence

Su Jianfeng, 36, pleaded guilty to having over US$400,000 in criminal proceeds from running an illegal gambling service in the Philippines

Reading Time:4 minutes

Singapore’s Merlion Park. The judge in the case outlined the need for deterrence to protect Singapore’s reputation as a financial hub. Photo: Reuters

Published: 3:45pm, 10 Jun 2024Updated: 3:52pm, 10 Jun 2024

The last of 10 people involved in Singapore’s S$3 billion (US$2.2 billion) money laundering investigation was on Monday handed a 17-month jail term – the harshest sentence meted out for the case.

Su Jianfeng, 36, was convicted on Thursday last week after he pleaded guilty to one charge each of possessing almost S$551,000 in criminal proceeds from running an illegal remote gambling service and fraudulently using a forged property sale contract to explain the source of deposits into his bank account.

Another 12 charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.

The prosecution had sought a jail term of between 17 and 18 months, while the defence had asked for a lower sentence of 14 1/2 months.

Delivering his brief remarks on his decision on Monday, District Judge James Elisha Lee outlined the general need for deterrence for such transnational crimes to protect Singapore’s reputation as a financial hub.

He also noted the higher amount involved across Su’s charges – compared to those already convicted – and other aggravating factors like premeditation and the multiple banks that became victims to Su’s crimes.