Man charged with forging doctor’s note on vaccination status, faces up to 4 years’ jail and fine

SINGAPORE — A 30-year-old man was charged on Wednesday (Sept 15) with allegedly forging a doctor’s memorandum on his vaccination status in order to fraudulently dine at a food-and-beverage (F&B) outlet. 

Zhang Shaopeng, a China national, was charged with a single count of forgery, which carries a maximum jail sentence of four years and fine.

He is one of the first to be charged here with faking vaccination credentials to gain entry into an eatery. 

Court documents showed that he had allegedly indicated his name on the memo issued by Raffles Medical, purportedly by a Dr Lim Ru Hui.

This was done “with the fraudulent intention” of being seen as fully vaccinated against Covid-19, the documents said.

In a statement on Tuesday, the police said the incident had allegedly occurred on Sept 1 at an establishment along Orchard Road. An employee from the F&B outlet had told Zhang to leave after he checked the doctor’s note and suspected that it could be forged, the police said.

Zhang was arrested on Tuesday following a police investigation.

Since Aug 10, those who are not vaccinated against Covid-19 can eat out only at hawker centres and coffee shops, at up to two to a table, but not at other dining places such as food courts or restaurants.

Dining in groups of up to five is permitted in all other establishments for fully vaccinated people.

A Raffles Medical spokesperson said: “Raffles Medical regrets this incident where one of our doctor’s memorandum was forged without our knowledge. We appreciate the interest and concern for our doctor and our Raffles brand of trust and care.”