NSF cheated SCDF supervisor of over $77k

SINGAPORE — His scam victims included his then Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) supervisor, and three teenage boys.

On Jan 24, Nicol Teo Chee Kang, 31, who made more than $194,000 in profit, was sentenced to two years and six months’ jail. He pleaded guilty to multiple charges including four counts of cheating.

Five other charges were considered during sentencing.

Teo was a full-time SCDF national serviceman in November 2020.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Jeremy Bin said he was under investigation for the offence linked to his then supervisor — a 47-year-old SCDF female paramedic — involving over $77,000, when he committed most of his other crimes.

Teo hatched a plan to cheat the woman after finding out she had bought a new Housing Board flat. He claimed that his sister owned a firm which could help in renovations.

He also deceived the woman into thinking he had a friend who sold furniture. She agreed to engage the services purportedly offered by his sister and his friend.

Between Nov 24, 2020, and Dec 29, 2021, Teo claimed that he corresponded with an HDB officer named "Janice Tan", who was purportedly in charge of handling transactions involving the flat.

The DPP told the court: "He informed the victim that 'Janice' required payment for renovation certificates, fire insurance and other administrative purposes. The victim therefore transferred the corresponding sums to the accused."

In all, there were more than 75 instances in which he cheated the victim.

The offences came to light when she contacted HDB and Teo came clean about what he had done. He admitted that he used the monies for personal expenses.

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She lodged a police report in January 2022 and he has since repaid $3,000.

Separately, he targeted three boys, aged between 17 and 19, and duped them into transferring more than $64,000 in total.

Teo got to know one of the boys through his mistress, who was a tenant in a unit. The teenager’s mother was her landlady.

On or around Nov 24, 2022, Teo lied to the 18-year-old boy, claiming that he had an investment opportunity — for every $1,000 invested, one would earn up to $30,000 in profit. The teenager gave him $45,856.

The 17-year-old boy transferred $3,400, and the 19-year-old boy more than $15,000, to Teo.

The 18-year-old boy’s mother found out that he had been transferring large sums of cash and confronted Teo.

Teo concocted a false narrative that he and her son were victims of a scam perpetrated by "Jia Jing" and "Jared". He told her that he would help her find these "scammers".

Teo also took her son’s phone and deleted all the messages relating to his offences.

The mother, who believed Teo, filed a police report and innocently repeated his lies to the authorities.

Teo told the teenager to tell the police that he had been scammed by "Jia Jing" and "Jared". Teo also said the teenager would not get his money back if he did not do as he was told.

The boy gave a false statement to the police.

In unrelated investment scams, Teo duped a woman into transferring $3,600 and cheated a 50-year-old man of nearly $49,000.

For each count of cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.

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This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.