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Former co-workers jailed for cheating Stat Boards co-op of over S$5m

SINGAPORE — Two ex-workers of the co-operative for government employees, who made the headlines previously for filching more than S$5 million over five years, had blown all their loot by the time the law caught up with them, it emerged on Tuesday (Aug 15) as a district judge sentenced them to jail.

SINGAPORE — Two ex-workers of the co-operative for government employees, who made the headlines previously for filching more than S$5 million over five years, had blown all their loot by the time the law caught up with them, it emerged on Tuesday (Aug 15) as a district judge sentenced them to jail.

Arni Ahmad, 41, who was sentenced to 12 years behind bars, pocketed around S$4.3 million which she splurged on sprucing up her home, taking her family on vacations, and staycations at top hotels here, among other things, a district court heard.

Her accomplice, Hanati Jani, 50, took over S$1.9 million and spent the money on gym memberships and jaunts to five-star hotels here, as well as transferred unspecified sums to Malaysian accounts. She was sentenced to jail for nine years and eight months.

Combined, the pair stole S$5.1 million from the Singapore Statutory Boards Employees’ Co-operative Thrift and Loan Society between 2008 and 2013 — the sums do not tally because some of the charges each woman faced overlapped.

Hundreds of charges, such as cheating and criminal breach of trust as a servant, were pressed against them. They each pleaded guilty to 20 counts, with the remaining taken into consideration for sentencing.

The co-operative, founded in 1925, has about 3,000 members who are employees of statutory boards and the Civil Service. Members pay S$10 monthly in subscription fees, which are deposited in a savings account frozen until the termination of the membership. They can also save more in a separate deposit account that members can freely withdraw cash from, while the co-operative also gives out loans.

Arni joined the co-operative in 2005 and was promoted to the post of assistant manager in January 2008. She was responsible for processing loans, deposits, withdrawals, and the maintenance of account movement records of members. She was also the main person in charge of processing payment for membership termination, and the collection of monthly subscription fees.

Hanati, who joined in April 2008, was responsible for recovering loans, and covering Arni’s duties in her absence. Months after she started work at the co-operative, the pilfering began. The women used the identities of phantom members to dupe the co-operative into disbursing money. Arni made use of more than 60 of her friends and relatives for this purpose, while Hanati called on more than 30.

The lengths to which they went to included creating fake documents like termination letters, payslips, and withdrawal or loan applications.

After the money was paid out to their friends and relatives made use of as phantom members, Arni and Hanati would instruct them to withdraw the money and hand it to them. The pair cooked up all sorts of tales to explain why the money had to circle through their accounts. For instance, they claimed this was to dodge income tax, or Arni lied that she was trying to hide her savings from her husband.

Their ruse was exposed on Oct 28, 2013, when the honorary secretary of the co-operative discovered the false and forged documents.

In arguing for a sentence of at least 12 years’ jail for Arni, and at least 10 years’ jail for Hanati, Deputy Public Prosecutor Kenneth Chin said a deterrent sentence was warranted, in light of the various aggravating factors, such as the abuse of their positions and the high levels of premeditation. The two had also hatched an “elaborate scheme” to avoid detection.

In sentencing, District Judge Lim Tse Haw noted the “staggering” amount cheated and the lack of restitution made. For cheating, they could have faced up to 10 years’ jail and a fine for each count.

What the two women splurged on

Arni Ahmad, 42, took S$4.3 million from the Singapore Statutory Boards Employees’ Co-operative Thrift and Loan Society over five years. Among the things she spent the loot on were:

  • Personal shopping expenses;
  • Telegraphic transfers amounting to over S$540,000 to unspecified accounts in Australia and Indonesia;
  • Family holidays in Europe and Malaysia;
  • Multiple staycations at five-star hotels including Capella Hotel Singapore, Amara Sanctuary Hotel Singapore, and Rasa Sentosa Shangri-La Singapore;
  • True Fitness memberships, with personal training sessions;
  • Monthly rentals for a condominium unit at Savannah Condopark; and
  • Home renovation works

Hanati Jani, 50, spent the S$1.9 million she stole on: 

  • Personal expenses and bills;
  • Telegraphic transfers of unspecified sums to unspecified accounts in Malaysia;
  • Multiple staycations at five-star hotels like Amara Sanctuary Hotel Singapore, and Rasa Sentosa Shangri-La Singapore; and
  • True Fitness memberships, with personal training sessions

 

 

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