A 22-year-old person coerced his friend into a marriage that he had met at a club that arranged ease marriages before making the decision to wed a foreigner to pay off his gambling debts.
In marrying 35-year-old Vietnamese national Bui Thi Huong so she could stay in Singapore for work, he received S$ 8, 000 ( US$ 6, 200 ).
Noel Teo Junwei received a nine-month, 10-week prison sentence on Thursday ( Sep 19 ), along with a S$$ 12, 000 fine.
He pleaded guilty to two immigration-related offenses under the Immigration Act, with three additional offenses being considered.
THE Event
The prosecutor was informed that Teo and Ang Kun Teng Javier, 26, made friends at a team called ICON2.
He learned that Ang arranged for another ‘ convenience relationships and that the Singaporean people who engaged in fake relationships were compensated for it.
Teo gave another colleague, Lim Meng Yang Ryan, the idea of a marriage of convenience, saying he could make money off of it and giving him Ang’s range.
Teo intended to receive a portion of Lim’s fake wedding because he wanted to get paid.
Teo and Ang made a deal on how much money they would receive on January 27, 2023, and when Lim was unsure about going through with it, Teo assured Ang that he would” settle” the situation.
Teo, who was Lim’s relationship witness, took photos of Lim and his new woman to take them to Ang the moment Lim’s sham wedding was solemnized on February 20, 2023.
After the meeting, Ang gave Teo S$ 3, 000 to S$ 4, 000 in money, when Lim was not around.
Teo kept an eye on Lim after the wedding because he was aware that Lim’s woman may receive additional payments once her long-term explore pass software was approved.
Teo was to get S$ 200 from the transaction.
TEO’S OWN Wedding
Teo started considering entering into a marriage of convenience in the second quarter of 2023 because he needed money to pay off his playing debt.
He was aware that he would have to wed a Taiwanese woman, serve as her native sponsor, and apply for visitor visas to allow her to work in Singapore.
In return, he would be paid: S$ 5, 000 on the day of the solemnisation, S$ 5, 000 on the day she successfully obtained a long-term visit pass under his sponsorship, and S$ 1, 000 per month until her pass expired.
After deciding to deal with the sham wedding, Teo received data from Ang about his wife-to-be, 35-year-old Asian Bui Thi Huong.
In situation the officials questioned their marriage, he flew to Vietnam to join her for the first time in January of this year. They spent a few days getting to know one another.
With Huong sponsoring the journey and jewels, they purchased their wedding bands in Vietnam.
On Ang’s request, the pair traveled up to Singapore up on January 21.
Teo filled out the Huong arrival card from Singapore, adding that despite the fact that she had previously resided there, he had her own address.
On February 1, the couple solemnized their union in a hotel room at the Hard Rock Hotel in Singapore. Ang was Teo’s wedding see.
After the meeting, Huong gave Teo S$ 5, 000 in funds as part of the planned reward, and the trio went their separate ways.
While Huong stayed in an Orchard Plaza apartment, Teo and his relatives lived in Sengkang. Yet though she did not reside there, her fresh “husband” recognized her as a resident of the Sengkang apartment.
Teo requested a loan later that month from Huong, claiming that this amount may be taken from any future obligations he would owe him. Huong agreed.
She was able to obtain a long-term visitor go in March thanks to Teo’s support.
In total, Teo received S$ 8, 000 from Huong for the wedding, comprising the S$ 5, 000 first payment and three monthly payments of S$ 1, 000 from March 2024.
After conducting background checks on the marriage of convenience, Immigration and Checkpoints Authority ( ICA ) officers detained Teo in his Sengkang flat in June.
Teo is one of six Asian women and seven Malaysian men who were taken to court by ICA in June for allegedly relating to sham marriages.
Ang is facing a number of fees, with the prosecution still pending. Lim’s situation is at the pre-trial meeting stage.
In a speech to CNA on Thursday, ICA stated that it is concerned about “individuals trying to avoid our system by engaging in or arranging/assisting to arrange relationships of ease in order to get immigration infrastructure in Singapore.”
” We will continue to vigorously enforce our laws against accidental people and middlemen,” said ICA.
The penalties for couples of pleasure is a prison term of up to 10 times, a fine of up to S$ 10, 000, or both.
For making false statements to get immigration services, an offender may remain jailed for up to a year, fined up to S$ 4, 000, or both.
ICA encouraged the people to report any suspected situations or immigration-related crimes to the expert.