There’s a saying that goes, “a leopard never changes its spots“, and while some have prevailed against this age-old phrase, others continue to prove it right.
Recently, a serial conman pleaded guilty to seven charges of cheating involving five women and money amounting to S$46,000.
This round of cheating comes after he had spent seven years in corrective training since 2013.
According to reports, he targeted his latest victims by looking for ‘sugar babies’ online between Jan and Aug 2021.
In total, Tan apparently cheated 10 victims during this period.
The 49-year-old man conman, Tan Chip Huat, started placing listings on the online classifieds website, Locanto, stating his search for a sugar baby, according to The Straits Times (ST).
In the listing, he described himself as someone working in the finance sector and earning S$60,000 a month.
In reality, he was a former cleaner who drew a monthly salary of less than S$2,000. Tan was even jobless in Jan and Feb 2021.
This time around, his victims included three minors who knew each other.
The judge has since called for Tan to undergo another round of corrective training, a punishment reserved for repeat offenders with no chance of early release.
On 4 Jan 2021, Tan got to know his first victim when a student responded to his post on Locanto, seeking a “long-term sugar girlfriend” for S$5,000 a month.
Tan then offered to sponsor her tuition at an art school, which amounted to S$20,000, in exchange for sexual services.
They met a day later at a hotel along Outram Road where they had unprotected sex.
Source: Google Maps
Afterwards, he allegedly promised to hand her half the amount and even managed to convince her to loan him S$400 as he claimed that he didn’t have any money.
Of course, the money he promised her was never delivered.
Later that month, Tan asked to meet with the teenager again, but she was unavailable.
At this juncture, the teenager introduced him to another girl, Victim 2, who agreed to have sex with him for S$1,000.
Tan thus met his next victim at a hotel in Robertson Quay and had unprotected sex with her. Once again, he failed to keep his end of the bargain.
ST reported that Tan told the first victim that he was going to withhold the payment unless another person could keep him company.
Panicking, she approached the third victim, a close friend who was working as a social escort.
Tan then threatened to expose her friend’s work as a social escort if he did not get a S$500 loan. She obliged and handed the money over.
Like all the times before, Tan had sex with his third victim, this time at a hotel in Newton, and did not give her the S$3,000 he promised.
According to TODAY, Tan employed the same method to cheat a fourth victim, a 23-year-old freelance social escort, in Jul 2021.
This time, however, he handed her a blank cheque and asked her to write S$10,000, presumably to cash in on her own time.
But when the woman tried to do so, the cheque bounced, and she alerted the police on 19 Jul 2021.
In an unrelated case, Tan also cheated a 25-year-old woman he met on Locanto of more than S$11,000.
He reportedly used her credit card to purchase various items, including Apple iPhones.
Tan will be sentenced in Aug 2022. For each count of cheating, he could face up to 10 years’ jail and a fine.
Tan’s compulsive behaviour has affected the lives of several impressionable teens and vulnerable women.
There’s no knowing how these experiences will affect them moving forward, but we hope they seek and receive the appropriate help if they need it.
And for his own sake, we hope his arrest this time will finally set Tan on the right path.
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Featured image adapted from Loan Advisor SG.
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