In Singapore’s largest money-laundering investigation, the Chinese national Lin Baoying, the sole female suspect among ten individuals implicated, was handed seven additional charges on Tuesday, May 21. These new charges include using forged documents and possessing benefits of criminal conduct, bringing her total number of charges to ten, one of which is perverting the course of justice. Lin’s lawyer, Chew Kei-jin, announced that she intended to plead guilty and requested an early date for her plea.
The money laundering scandal embroiled multiple banks, property agents, precious metal traders, and a top golf club. On 15 August 2023, the Police conducted a large scale, island-wide raid. The lurid details have gripped Singaporeans – among the seized assets were 152 properties, 62 vehicles, shelves of luxury bags and watches, hundreds of pieces of jewellery and thousands of bottles of alcohol.
In the court hearing, Lin, 44, herself affirmed the intended guilty plea through a Mandarin interpreter, expressing her desire for an expedited hearing. She now faces a total of 10 charges, including the new accusations related to forgery and criminal proceeds. The original charges, filed in August 2023, were amended from forgery to using forged documents as genuine ones. Lin was among ten foreigners arrested following an islandwide raid by the Commercial Affairs Department, marking the beginning of Singapore’s largest money laundering case.
Lin’s next court appearance is scheduled for a pre-trial conference on Thursday.
The additional charges specify that Lin allegedly submitted a forged property sale agreement to UOB Kay Hian, justifying a deposit of HK$7.5 million (S$1.2 million), and a forged loan agreement to OCBC Bank to justify a deposit of HK$5 million. She is also accused of possessing HK$209 million in suspected criminal proceeds.
Court documents reveal that Lin conspired with Liu Kai and Li Hongmin to forge documents intended to deceive Bank Julius Baer & Co. This activity allegedly took place on or before November 24, 2020.
The money laundering case has led to the seizure or freezing of over $215 million in assets from Lin, contributing to the total assets exceeding $3 billion, including luxury homes, cars, watches, and bags. This case is not only Singapore’s largest but also one of the most significant globally.
Lin’s partner, Zhang Ruijin, 45, was sentenced to 15 months in prison in April after pleading guilty to one money laundering charge and two forgery charges. The couple was apprehended last August in a bungalow on Pearl Island at Sentosa Cove. It was disclosed that Lin and Zhang, though not officially married, lived together in Sentosa while Lin’s 15-year-old daughter resided in Beach Road with a domestic helper.
The prosecution revealed that Zhang referred to Lin as his wife despite their unofficial status. During his first court appearance, Zhang stated, “You can separate her crimes from me, we are just lovers… You can bail me out, but remand her.”
To date, six suspects have been convicted, with jail terms ranging from 13 to 15 months. Five other men—Su Wenqiang, Wang Baosen, Vang Shuiming, Su Haijin, and Su Baolin—were each jailed between 13 and 14 months. Collectively, they have forfeited over $541.9 million in assets to the state. Su Wenqiang and Wang Baosen were deported to Cambodia on May 6 after serving approximately 8½ months of their sentences.
Two more accused are expected to plead guilty soon. Cambodian national Chen Qingyuan, facing 10 charges, is set to do so on May 23. Cypriot national Wang Dehai, facing two money laundering charges, is expected to plead guilty on June 13.
