On Wednesday (25 Jan), a 58-year-old tuition centre administration staff, Hah Fong Yong, pleaded guilty to redeeming government-issued masks illegally.
She allegedly took down the NRIC numbers of the students and parents from the centre and used them to redeem more masks for her family.
Source: Temasek Foundation on Facebook
If found guilty of cheating, Hah faces up to 10 years’ jail and a fine.
According to Channel NewsAsia (CNA), Hah apparently started noting down students’ and parents’ NRIC numbers secretly in Mar 2021.
She worked at Stalford Tuition Centre – located at Block 209 Upper Changi Road – and was in charge of enrolling students for tuition classes. As such, she needed to take down the NRIC numbers of students and parents as part of her work.
She took advantage of this and used the NRIC numbers recorded to redeem masks from vending machines by Temasek Foundation.
CNA reported that Hah managed to redeem 20 masks, valued at S$200 in total.
TODAY reported that on 3 Mar 2021, a mother filed a police report when both she and her son were unable to redeem masks from the vending machine.
The police subsequently identified Hah with the help of CCTV footage. She was arrested on 11 Mar 2021.
20 unopened mask packs, which were illegally redeemed, were also seized from her home.
According to CNA, Hah redeemed the masks as she believed that her family “needed more face masks”. She also thought that “it would be a waste” if other families did not redeem their masks.
Hah had to undergo a forensic psychiatric assessment with the Institute of Mental Health. Based on court documents, results showed that Hah was not suffering from hoarding disorder.
The 58-year-old was also not suffering from other mental illnesses either during the offence.
For cheating, Hah faces up to 10 years jail and a fine. She will return to court for sentencing on 10 Feb.
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Featured image adapted from Bedok Mall on Facebook and Temasek Foundation on Facebook
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