SINGAPORE – Four men allegedly engaged in a ruse to obtain home loans of more than $6 million involving the use of a residential property as collateral without the owner’s knowledge.
The scheme involved the impersonation of the victim, the use of forged documents, and luring the victim away from his home so that property valuations could be done without his knowledge, said the police in a statement on Nov 9.
The four suspects, aged between 27 and 39, are set to be charged in court on Nov 10.
As part of the ruse, the 39-year-old man impersonated the owner and used forged identity documents for the loan applications.
A 36-year-old man helped in forging an NRIC that was used in the ruse.
A 27-year-old man lured the owner away from his home twice under false pretences.
While the owner was out of his home, a 29-year-old man helped with gaining access to the owner’s home for valuers to conduct property valuations without his knowledge, said the police.
Through the ruse, the men intended to obtain home loans of more than $6 million from two credit companies, the police added.
The police were alerted to the case on April 3, when they received a report where the victim discovered that a caveat had been lodged against his property in connection with a loan application that he had not approved.
A caveat is a legal document obtained by a potential buyer who wants to exercise an option to buy a property.
Preliminary investigations revealed that fraudulent documents were used to apply for home loans, with the victim’s property used as collateral.
Through follow-up investigations, the police established the identities of the four men involved and arrested them during a two-day operation on April 14 and 15. A forged NRIC and mobile phones were seized.
Investigations found that the four suspects worked with another man, whom the police are still looking for.
Both the 27-year-old man and the 39-year old man will each be charged with two counts of abetment of cheating, while the 29-year-old man will be charged with one count of abetment of cheating.
Anyone found guilty of abetment of cheating could be jailed for up to 10 years, fined or caned, or both.
The 39-year-old man will also be charged with one count of possession of a forged identity and three counts of using as genuine a forged electronic record. If found guilty of the former, he could be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to 10 years, or both. If found guilty of the latter, he could be jailed for up to 10 years.
The 36-year-old man will be charged with one count of abetting the unlawful issue of an identity card. If found guilty, he could be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to 10 years, or both.
