SINGAPORE: A man who married a Georgian woman who was looking for a way to stay in Singapore was convicted over the marriage of convenience on Wednesday (Nov 22), along with the man who instigated the marriage.
Kok Chiang Loong, 43, was found guilty of instigating Goh Khoon Beng, 45, into marrying 37-year-old Akhalkatsi Maia in February 2016.
Goh was convicted of marrying Maia in a marriage of convenience that would offer her an immigration advantage in the form of a visit pass, while he received free lodging from Maia as a reward.
Maia had pleaded guilty to her role in the sham marriage and was sentenced to six months’ jail. She testified for the prosecution against the two men and was subsequently deported.
She had testified about how she repeatedly tried to find a job in Singapore without success. In November 2015, she resorted to plying the nightlife trade and met a Vietnamese woman at a pub, the court heard.
The woman told Maia she could apply for a student pass to remain in Singapore and told her to contact Kok for details, District Judge Marvin Bay said while explaining why he was convicting the two Singaporean men.
Kok arranged for Maia to enrol in an international college, but her student pass application was not approved, said Judge Bay.
Maia testified that Kok then proposed a marriage of convenience.
When she first met Goh at a Vietnamese restaurant, she said she was taken aback by his unkempt appearance but that Kok persuaded her.
The marriage was solemnised on Feb 2, 2016, but they did not consummate it, said Judge Bay.
Goh, who had been staying at the restaurant as he had no home, first lived with Maia at her rented premises. She later paid S$1,000 per month to rent an adjacent room for him.
After they were married, Maia’s applications for extensions of her visit pass were all approved, with Goh as her sponsor. Maia said she also supported Goh with his daily expenses.
GOH’S TESTIMONY
Judge Bay said that while Goh had claimed trial, he “maintained an ambivalent disposition” in putting forward his defence and did not seem to take issue with the prosecution’s case.
His own statements did not differ from the prosecution’s characterisation of the marriage as a sham, conceding in one of his statements that his reason for marrying was for shelter.
According to Goh, Kok had dictated the terms of marrying Maia at their first meeting at the restaurant.
Goh also testified about Kok taking “such an involved role” in their proposed marriage, to the point of setting the date.
He said Kok even had access to his Singpass, from as far back as July 2015, when Goh divorced his then-wife.
Goh said he had misgivings about the marriage, as he was with a Vietnamese woman at the time. Despite this, he attended a pre-marital class with Maia.
Kok’s lawyer, Mr Rajwin Singh Sandhu from Rajwin & Yong, tried arguing that the couple had a genuine relationship.
This was because Maia testified about helping Goh overcome his fear of water by bathing him and shaving his armpits and private parts.
Judge Bay said these seemed to be “isolated acts of kindness that did little to dispel the impression of the transactional nature of their association”.
He also noted that Maia was a trained beautician in Georgia and this assistance would “not be at all unusual or unexpected”.
Judge Bay said Maia herself confessed that she was repelled by Goh when she first met him and said she could not marry Goh as she did not like him.
This resulted in a delay in the planned marriage.
“Kok’s persistence in seeing through the planned marriage had extended to his bringing Goh to Maia’s residence and leaving him there,” said Judge Bay, adding that Maia was eventually persuaded when Kok told him the only way to extend her visa was to marry Goh.
While the defence had introduced witnesses claiming to have heard Goh “exult over his married life” and seeing expressions of affection, Judge Bay said these were merely expressions, if at all accurate.
They were also “flatly contradicted by the testimonies of the actual protagonists – Goh and Maia”, he said.
The couple has since divorced.
For entering into a marriage of convenience under the Immigration Act, Goh can be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to S$10,000, or both.
Kok faces the same penalties for instigating Goh into entering into a marriage of convenience.
The pair will return to court for sentencing at a later date.
Kok has two charges under the Immigration Act pending against him.