SINGAPORE: Three men have been sentenced to six months in jail for deceiving a woman out of S$4,000 (US$3,070) using fake gold ingots, as announced on Wednesday (Oct 9).
The accused—Wen Yanchun, 52, Zhu Xiaoyuan, 51, and Kang Shouming, 62—convinced the victim that they had uncovered genuine gold ingots during excavation work in Singapore.
On June 19, Wen and Zhu approached the victim, showing her gold-colored ingots and claiming they had been found at a construction site. To bolster their deception, they presented a fabricated document featuring old Chinese writing that resembled an ancient will, seeking the victim’s assistance to verify the ingots’ worth.
The victim accompanied the men to a goldsmith shop on Eu Tong Sen Street for authentication checks. Instead of providing one of the fake ingots, the men gave her a genuine gold piece from a bracelet belonging to Wen’s wife for verification.
Wen and Zhu claimed they wanted to avoid raising suspicion and insisted that the real gold piece had been cut from one of the ingots. The goldsmith staff authenticated the genuine piece, informing the victim it was worth approximately S$450. Subsequently, the men proposed that the victim help safeguard some of the fake ingots in exchange for cash as collateral.
Believing their story, the victim handed over S$4,000 in cash for 30 gold-colored ingots. She realized she had been scammed when she returned to the goldsmith to authenticate the ingots, only to learn they were fake. Alarmed, she reported the incident to the police.
Wen and Zhu were arrested on June 20. Authorities also located and apprehended Kang, seizing over 80 fake gold ingots, six gold-colored mini Buddha statues, and the counterfeit document resembling an old will.
The police have urged the public to be cautious of offers that seem “too good to be true” and to seek professional help before purchasing high-value items.
“The police maintain a zero-tolerance policy against deliberate criminal acts and will make every effort to apprehend offenders,” stated a police spokesperson. “Perpetrators will face strict consequences in accordance with the law.”
