Man steals S$54K from friend’s CPF account by transferring money to his own account
While visiting an elderly friend in the hospital, a man took the opportunity to steal a total of S$54,000 from her Central Provident Fund (CPF) account.
He also forged a police report to cover his tracks, according to court documents seen by Channel NewsAsia (CNA).
Man visited victim in hospital after she became bedridden
Singaporean Yu Mingyan, 34, had gotten to know the victim at work, and she became a close friend.
The 62-year-old woman became bedridden and was warded in Gleneagles Hospital permanently, unable to move or speak.
While he was in debt, Yu visited her multiple times, but committed the offence over three occasions in June and July 2023.
Photo for illustration purposes only.
Man steals money from CPF account after guessing passwords
Having guessed the victim’s phone and mobile app passwords, Yu used her phone to access her CPF account during his visits.
He withdrew money from her account and then transferred the cash to his own account.
The first time, he transferred S$30,000, then took S$20,000 the second time.
In the third instance, he stole S$4,000.
Source: Jonas Leupe on Unsplash. Photo for illustration purposes only.
Man forges police report, pretending he was a victim too
However, the victim’s niece noticed the transactions and asked Yu about them.
He claimed not to know what had happened, saying he was also a victim of unauthorised transactions.
In October 2023, he forged a police report, altering one that his mother had filed.
He sent the edited police report to the victim’s niece, making it seem like he had filed a police report in August 2023 about the unauthorised transactions.
But when the niece later questioned him again, he became uncontactable in January 2024. The niece made a police report in October 2024.
He facilitated bank transfers for moneylender and stole cash from hospital
Meanwhile, Yu continued to be up to no good.
When he could not repay S$600 that he borrowed from an unlicensed moneylender, he agreed to assist the moneylender in facilitating bank transfers using his own account.
He made at least 16 transfers in November 2023, which included receiving cash from debtors and transferring it to other accounts on behalf of the moneylender.
His account was eventually closed by DBS Bank after it was flagged for suspicious activity.
Separately, Yu also worked as a physiotherapist assistant in Farrer Park Hospital. In July 2024, he took S$197 from a petty cash box, spending the money on himself.
Source: Google Maps
He told the police that he had done this “out of habit”.
He can’t afford to repay money he stole from CPF account
In court on Monday (8 Sept), Yu pleaded guilty to two charges under the Computer Misuse Act for using his friend’s Singpass app on her phone to authorise the CPF transfers.
He also pleaded guilty to two additional charges: aiding the operation of an unlicensed moneylending business and misappropriating cash.
When District Judge Eddy Tham asked him whether he was going to repay the victim the money he took from her CPF, he said he could not afford to.
Though he was currently working, he could not set aside money to pay the victim back because the money was for his family, he added.
The prosecution said that Yu’s financial records showed that he was financially unable to pay back the amount.
Man jailed & fined
Judge Tham eventually sentenced Yu to 18 months and two weeks in prison and a fine of S$30,000.
He will serve an extra month in jail if he cannot pay the fine.
The judge said the defendant’s crime was “highly egregious” as he took advantage of a close friend who had fallen into a worse state than him, adding:
Instead of helping your friend, you have betrayed her trust by helping yourself to her CPF monies to alleviate your own problems.
He also had “no qualms” in taking the money needed for her care, even committing forgery to conceal his crime.
Also read: Teen steals over S$90K from father’s CPF & bank accounts for fishing & South Korea trips
Teen steals over S$90K from father’s CPF & bank accounts for fishing & South Korea trips
 Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image by MS News.
