72-year-old fined $600k for operating illegal migrant worker dorms in 11 residences

SINGAPORE - A 72-year-old man was fined $600,000 for converting 11 private residential properties into unauthorised dormitories that he then rented out to migrant workers. One of the units housed 23 foreigners.

Inspections carried out between January 2016 and April 2018 found that Tan Hock Keng had carved multiple rooms in the residences, which he then packed with workers, who had to live in unhygienic conditions.

At a unit in Geylang, enforcement officers from the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) found that the floor and walls of the kitchen and toilets were badly stained.

They also discovered bedbug stains in a bedroom of another unit nearby.

On May 30, Tan was convicted of three charges, with eight additional charges for similar offences at other private residential properties taken into consideration.

The Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) in a statement on June 14 said that MOM enforcement officers who inspected properties linked to Tan found that the number of occupants "significantly exceeded" the authority's occupancy cap rules.

Under its regulations, private residential properties can house up to only six unrelated people, or eight unrelated occupants if the property owners succeed in their application for a temporary relaxation of the cap.

During one inspection carried out on Dec 15, 2017, MOM officers found nine migrant workers in a flat on the third storey of a building in Serangoon.

The flat had been divided into 15 rooms, eight of which were locked. There were nine beds in the unlocked rooms.

Investigations showed that Tan had offered the unit as a dormitory for about two years, charging about $500 for a room with one occupant and $550 for a room with two occupants.

Fifteen migrant workers were housed there during that period, with Tan pocketing the rent.

Another inspection carried out on March 13, 2018 found 16 workers residing in a flat in Geylang and 17 in a unit nearby.

The workers had to set up make-shift clothing lines close to their beds, with their belongings stacked everywhere.

The URA statement said Tan admitted to knowing the regulations, but decided to convert the residences into dormitories anyway. He was charged in court in November 2021.

Mr Martin Tan, the director of URA's Development Control Group, said: "Unauthorised dormitory accommodation not only adversely affects the residential character of the neighbourhood, but also negatively impacts the occupants, who may be from more vulnerable groups that are susceptible to exploitation."

He added that URA will be strict in enforcement against anyone found to have flouted the laws.

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