SINGAPORE — A former director of a travel agency pleaded guilty today (July 30) to offences related to cheating and criminal breach of trust involving more than S$6.6 million.

The court heard that 33-year-old Brenda Ng Lay Yen cheated 28 people of the money between 2009 and last year.

She told them that she was engaged in various investments in which they stood to make high profits if they invested with her. These sham investments were related to diamonds, oil, Universal Studio tickets and memberships, and plane tickets.

Ng would then tell the victims she needed more assistance in the various investments, thus causing them to recruit their families and friends as “investors”.

The victims were deceived into parting with large sums of cash.

Ng would then give them sums of money — which she claimed were the “profits” — in order to get them to continue investing.

She issued them personal cheques, company cheques and third-party cheques as a form of “security” on the investments, and told them they could cash the cheques at a later date to receive the profits.

However, when they tried to do so, they found the banks did not honour the cheques for reasons that included the bank accounts being closed.

The court also heard that Ng had placed ads in the local newspapers to sell flight tickets and tour packages, using the names of other travel agencies as a front.

When customers bought these packages and paid her, she then misappropriated the money — for example, by using it to repay other victims for purchases they made with her, or for debts she had accumulated.

Ng, who is currently in remand, has made repayments of about S$2.3 million.

Ng also pleaded guilty to theft and forgery charges.

She had stolen cheque books belonging to her sister and brother-in-law, as well as forged their signatures on the cheques — which would then be given to some of the victims as “security”.

In total, Ng faced 75 charges — 25 were proceeded on, and the remaining 50 were taken into consideration.

Her lawyer asked for the case to be adjourned to prepare her mitigation.

Ng will be back in court for sentencing on Aug 23. CHANNEL NEWSASIA