Chinese couple who flew to S’pore just to scam others sentenced to jail for cheating case at Joo Koon

Couple involved in Joo Koon cheating case was Chinese couple who came to Singapore to scam others

A Chinese husband-and-wife duo who flew into Singapore specifically to scam strangers have been jailed after tricking a man into handing over hundreds of dollars in cash.

Came to Singapore solely to scam, prosecutors say

During sentencing, prosecutors described the couple’s behaviour as calculated and premeditated, even saying they treated Singapore as their personal “hunting ground”.

Ma Yongwang, 31, received 11 months’ jail, while his wife, 30-year-old Liu Yaxue, was sentenced to nine months. Both broke down in tears as the sentence was read out.

Liu also submitted a handwritten apology, saying she was ashamed for “disturbing social order”, wasting public resources, and exploiting the victim’s kindness.

Targeted victim near Joo Koon MRT

The pair admitted to using forged documents in their scam, with several other cheating-related charges taken into consideration.

They arrived in Singapore on 2 Sept and were due to leave just three days later, staying at a Geylang hotel.

According to the Singapore Police Force, they approached their victim — a 23-year-old Malaysian man working in Singapore — on 3 Sept near Joo Koon MRT station.

Ma, using a fake name, claimed the couple were from Hong Kong, that their bank cards weren’t working, and that they had no money.

He asked the victim to buy them a meal, which he agreed to.

Over the meal, Ma told the victim he urgently needed S$800 to settle a hotel bill and promised to repay HKD $5,500 (S$917).

He requested the victim’s bank details and even showed a doctored screenshot of a transfer supposedly in progress.

When no money arrived, Ma claimed it would “take time” and eventually persuaded the victim to withdraw S$800 in cash instead.

The next day, the victim realised he had been scammed and made a police report.

Fake gold ring used as ‘collateral’

To make their lies more convincing, the couple handed over a gold ring they claimed was their wedding ring as collateral.

They even produced a fake receipt valuing it at RM11,980 (S$3,760).

But when the victim brought it to a pawnshop, the ring turned out to be counterfeit.

Police later found seven more fake gold rings in the couple’s luggage — all intended for similar scams.

Also read: Couple arrested for allegedly cheating victim of S$800 at Joo Koon by giving him fake gold ring

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Featured image adapted from SMRT & Singapore Police Force.