Wu Hong, 41, a female Chinese national who had cheated at least five victims out of about S$2.16 million, was sentenced to 12 years in jail by Singapore’s courts on Feb 15.

Two of the victims are veteran Singaporean actresses Tan Lee Peng (Chen Liping) and Lim Mooi Keow (Lin Meijiao), and they lost S$273,000 and S$186,000, respectively, between Nov., 2019 and Dec., 2019.

Wu pleaded not guilty to five cheating charges and was convicted after trial.

She faces another 12 cheating charges, which will be dealt with separately, involving another S$3.4 million and multiple victims.

Friend introduced to Wu by "Fengshui master"

Court documents reveal that Tan and Lim came to know Wu through their common female friend Soh Choon Heong.

Soh was introduced to Wu by a “Fengshui master”.

The prosecution’s case was that Wu deceived victims into believing that she had an investment scheme providing Chinese nationals visiting Singapore with funds for gambling in local casinos.

Wu convinced the victims with high returns and enticed them to “invest” more money into a scheme that didn’t exist.

Tan and Lim testified in trial

During the trial, the prosecution called the various victims to the stand, including Tan and Lim, who both testified against Wu.

In his closing submissions, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Jonathan Tan argued that they had no reason to lie in court and that they were prominent media personalities risking unnecessary media exposure.

The defence denied the allegations and put forth various arguments, claiming that the victims offered Wu “loans” or that Soh was the perpetrator of the scams and Wu was merely a “middleman”.

Almost S$2 million deposited in casinos

When confronted with the almost S$2 million expenditure in the casinos over four years, Wu claimed that she mostly “helped people gamble” and also gambled “(her) own money but mostly in the smaller amount”.

DPP Jonathan Tan then put forward casino deposit records and pointed out that 75 per cent of the amount Soh and her friends lost was traceable to deposits into Wu’s casino accounts.

A district judge convicted Wu of the five cheating charges at the close of the trial.

"Heartless con artist"

After conviction, the prosecution asked for Wu to be sentenced 12 to 13 years and called her a “heartless con artist” who had used premeditated and sustained deception to cultivate and exploit victims’ trust.

DPP Jonathan Tan said that she perpetrated the scheme out of pure greed and self-interest, displayed an utter lack of remorse, and instead accused victims of various outrageous allegations during trial.

According to Lianhe Zaobao, Lim Mooi Keow denied a request for an interview but said through her manager that she appreciates everyone’s concerns and wants to move on.

Top image via Instagram @aiyoyochenliping & @linmeijiao_