Nine Men jailed for bank fraud
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Nine men, aged from 35 to 55, were jailed for 14 to 54 months for bank fraud at District Court today (February 9).

The Court heard that the nine defendants were members of a criminal syndicate, which was involved in a bank fraud.

The case was taken over by the Commercial Crime Bureau (CCB) for investigation in October 2005. Enquiries revealed that the fraudsters set up three locally incorporated companies and other bogus supplier companies. They submitted some false bank statements, auditor's reports and invoices to victimized banks to obtain credit facilities between April 2004 and March 2006.

After the credit lines were set up, the fraudsters would submit false invoices in order to draw funds out from the bank to the accounts of the bogus companies until the credit lines were used up. The money was then subsequently diverted back to the syndicate members.

Enquiries also revealed that nine banks were deceived of $70.7 million, among which $31.5 million was not recovered and $3 million was guaranteed by the Small Medium Enterprise Guarantee Scheme.

Till August 2007, Officers of CCB arrested a number of people aged between 27 and 55 including three masterminds. Some documents, computers and facsimile machines were also seized in the operation.

Nine of arrested men were later charged with conspiracy to defraud.

On January 17 2009, they were convicted of the offences and the sentence was handed down by the District Court today.

Police Report No. 10
Issued by PPRB

End/Monday, February 09, 2009
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