On November 11, Lee Beng Yong, also known as Muhammad Zaki Lee, was sentenced to three years and nine months in prison for his involvement in a massive loan scam that defrauded two banks out of $1.2 million. Lee, 55, worked alongside a female accomplice, Tan You Jia, also known as Gina, to deceive Standard Chartered Bank (SCB) and Maybank into disbursing loans totaling $1,218,000 by submitting false statements.
District Judge Marvin Bay, who convicted Lee of six counts of cheating, remarked that Lee was not merely an employee in the scam but instead a “trusted lieutenant” to his accomplice, Tan. In earlier proceedings, defence lawyer Joshua Tong revealed that Tan had taken all the illicit profits from the scam, while Lee was paid a mere $5,000 for his role in the operation.
The fraudulent scheme involved the use of companies to secure loans from the banks using forged documents. Once the loans were approved, the companies made minimal repayments to maintain their creditworthiness, allowing them to obtain further loans in a pattern similar to a Ponzi scheme. The companies were then used to perpetuate the scam, with the perpetrators continuing to take out loans without any intention of repaying them.
As part of the scheme, Lee accompanied Tan to a corporate secretarial firm, where Tan became the sole director and shareholder of a company called Natsal, later renamed Gervin International. This company played a key role in securing the fraudulent loans, further cementing Lee’s involvement in the operation.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Cheah Wenjie emphasized that the scheme was a well-organized fraud, with forged documents and minimal repayments used to deceive the banks into issuing large sums of money. The conviction highlights the seriousness of financial fraud and the lengths to which individuals will go to exploit the banking system.
Lee’s sentencing is a significant development in a case that has drawn attention to fraudulent practices within the banking sector, with authorities taking strong action to deter such criminal activities.