S'porean David Yong, 37, CEO in Netflix show, denied bail, handed 2 new charges for falsifying accounts

Singaporean businessman and lawyer David Yong, who appeared in Netflix reality series "Super Rich in Korea", was handed two fresh charges in court on Aug. 8.

The new charges were over falsifying accounts in relation to a promissory note arrangement involving Evergreen Group Holdings, The Straits Times reported.

Yong, 37, is the chief executive officer of Evergreen Group Holdings.

New charges

The new charges accuse Yong of abetting his employee Jolene Low Mong Han on or about Dec. 16, 2021, to falsify papers belonging to Evergreen GH, formerly known as Evergreen Assets Management.

Evergreen GH is one of the entities under Evergreen Group Holdings.

One invoice was dated May 13, 2021, for the purported sale of furniture to Evergreen Venture Capital.

The other was dated Oct. 22, 2021, for a purported sale of furniture and interior design services to another individual.

Yong was previously charged on Aug. 3 with abetting Low to falsify a Sep. 1, 2021 tax invoice for the purported bulk sale of household fittings and appliances.

Police investigating Yong's companies for alleged fraud

According to an Aug. 3 police statement, the commercial affairs department (CAD) is investigating the business activities of Evergreen Group Holdings for alleged fraud.

Yong and Evergreen Group Holdings chief operating officer Desmond Sim, 37, were arrested on Aug. 1 in connection with the case.

Sim has been released on bail.

Yong is currently in remand at the Central Police Division.

On Jan. 27, 2023, Evergreen GH was placed on the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Investor Alert List.

This indicates that the company is not regulated or licensed to provide financial services in Singapore.

Denied bail on Aug. 8

The prosecution argued in court that Yong should not be granted bail due to ongoing investigations, ST reported.

The prosecution noted that the investigations are complex, as Evergreen Group Holdings involves numerous corporate entities both in Singapore and overseas.

They added that further evidence was obtained during Yong’s first period of remand.

Investigations by CAD found that Yong was in possession of a Cambodian identity card and passport belonging to Duong Dara, but which bore the same photograph and birth date as Yong.

The prosecution noted that the whereabouts of these documents are currently unknown and Yong has not provided them.

As such, the prosecution opined that he is “at present a real flight risk notwithstanding his roots in Singapore”.

Yong’s lawyer argued that bail could be granted on stringent conditions where he reports daily to CAD and is tagged for police tracking.

Yong said he had renounced his Cambodian citizenship in early June and is willing to abide by all the conditions for bail to be granted.

Yong was ultimately denied bail on Aug. 8.

The judge granted the prosecution’s request to remand Yong for seven more days.

His case will be heard again on Aug. 15.

More about Yong

Yong appeared in Netflix reality series "Super Rich in Korea", which first aired in May.

In the show, Yong had showed off his "villa" in Singapore complete with 11 cars, and said he was "Singapore's 1 per cent super rich".

Evergreen Group Holdings, where Yong holds the position of CEO, has businesses in industries, such as timber and microfinancing.

Yong is also a lawyer and managing partner at boutique law firm YSL Legal LLP.

Top image from David Yong's Instagram.