Malaysian man overstays in S’pore for 19 years, working as karang guni man
A 72-year-old Malaysian man has been jailed and fined for overstaying in Singapore for 19 years.
He reportedly made a living as a karang guni man, according to case details reported by Lianhe Zaobao.
Source: Pixelshot on Canva. Photo for illustration purposes only.
Man arrested in Genting Lane
The man, Lin Guifa (transliterated from Mandarin), was arrested on 27 Nov in the vicinity of 83 Genting Lane, an industrial building in the MacPherson area.
Source: Google Maps
He was unable to produce any documents showing that he was a legal resident of Singapore.
Thus, he was subsequently handed over to the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA).
Malaysian last entered & departed S’pore 19 years ago
Investigations revealed that the man’s fingerprints matched those of a man named Lin Guifa, who entered Singapore on a social visit pass in 2006, via Woodlands Checkpoint.
ICA records showed that he last departed Singapore on 26 June that year.
But there were no subsequent entry records.
Man never left S’pore or applied to extend his stay
Lin told the authorities that he supported himself in Singapore as a karang guni man, collecting old and discarded items.
He admitted that he had never left Singapore, nor applied to extend his stay here.
It was not disclosed how his offence was eventually uncovered.
Man pleads guilty, asks for leniency
Appearing in court via video link on 11 Dec, Lin pleaded guilty to one count of violating immigration laws.
Looking haggard and seated in a wheelchair, he asked for leniency, saying his legs were weak and that standing and walking had become difficult.
He added that he believed he had only “one or two years left to live” and hoped to return to Johor Bahru to spend his remaining years in a nursing home.
He was sentenced to six months in prison and a fine of S$2,000, but avoided caning due to his age.
For overstaying for more than 90 days, he could have been sentenced to up to six months’ jail and at least three strokes of the cane, or fined up to S$6,000 in lieu of caning.
Also read: Woman from China overstays in S’pore for 28 years, gets 6 months’ jail & fine
Woman from China overstays in S’pore for 28 years, gets 6 months’ jail & fine
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