SINGAPORE – The sole director of a company became involved in a scheme with a money laundering syndicate and the company’s bank account later received the benefits of an impersonation worth a total of US$952,000 (more than US$1.27 million).
Chinese national Chen Binjue, 41, who at the time headed the public relations firm Dionysuss Lifestyle, was sentenced on November 5 to two years and four months in prison.
The Singapore permanent resident had pleaded guilty to one charge of dealing with the benefits of criminal conduct.
Eight other misdemeanor charges, including forgery, were considered during sentencing.
The prosecutor said almost all of the money, with the exception of about $3,000, was returned to the victim – a company based in the United Kingdom.
Chen founded Dionysuss Lifestyle in 2016, but a search by the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority on November 5 revealed she is no longer a director at the company.
In 2019, she became involved in a scheme with a money laundering syndicate made up of unknown people from China.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Kathy Chu told the court: “She consented to Dionysuss’ bank account in Singapore being used to receive the syndicate’s funds.
“She had reasonable grounds to believe that the syndicate was engaged in criminal conduct and that its funds were benefiting (crime).”
On June 25, 2019, a director of a company called International Data Corporation UK (IDC UK) fell victim to a phone impersonation scam when a person posing as his superior contacted him.
The director was told that he needed to make arrangements for a transaction as part of the “business takeover” of IDC UK and that a lawyer would contact him.
A person posing as a lawyer then contacted the director, who was asked to arrange a transaction of $952,000 into Dionysuss Lifestyle’s Maybank account.
The director gave instructions for the transaction to take place and the money was deposited into the account the next day.
On June 27, 2019, $296,639 was transferred from the account to a Hong Kong company called New Ginwa.
Maybank Singapore was later alerted about the ill-gotten gains in Dionysuss Lifestyle’s bank account.
The bank froze the account and requested a recall of the $296,639 payment.