S'pore lawyer, 30, disbarred after spending S$4,349 on credit card he found in private-hire car

A lawyer was caught for credit card fraud in 2022 after he used a credit card left behind in a private hire vehicle by a previous passenger to make purchases of S$4,349 in total.

On Feb. 4, 2025, Li Zhongsheng pleaded guilty to cheating and was sentenced to three weeks in prison, which he has since completed serving, according to a court judgment seen by Mothership.

Two other charges were taken into consideration at the sentencing: one for the dishonest misappropriation of the cardholder, and the other for cheating by using the credit card to purchase a packet of cigarettes at a convenience store.

According to The Straits Times, Li, 30, was admitted to the Singapore Bar on Aug. 23, 2021.

The Law Society of Singapore filed an application on Jul. 10, 2025, to strike Li off the roll of advocates and solicitors in Singapore over his offence, which would prohibit him from practising law in Singapore.

On Oct. 14, the Court of Three Judges at the Supreme Court agreed and made the order to do so.

Bought a laptop and speaker

Li was getting a ride to Yishun in a private-hire vehicle on Aug. 28, 2022, when he spotted a cardholder containing multiple cards left behind by the previous passenger, ST reported.

He began with a "test purchase" that afternoon, and used one of the cards to buy a packet of cigarettes, before deciding to make bigger purchases.

According to ST, he purchased a S$3,198 laptop for his younger brother, added a S$635 warranty for the laptop, and a S$349 speaker.

He gave the salesman fake names and contact numbers to avoid being linked to the purchases.

According to ST, he said the laptop and warranty were for "Brandon Tan", and the speaker for "Jonathan Chua".

The store gave him a monitor as a promotional gift, which he also took home.

Li was finally caught after the owner of the card made a police report around 9:30pm that day, having received a notification about the S$4,349 value of transactions through his card.

The card owner had also contacted the private-hire car driver and got Li's name and contact number.

Around 8pm the next day, Li was arrested. The items he bought with the card were seized.

After his arrest, Li said he had been “greedy and stupid” in making the purchases, ST quoted from court documents.

On Aug. 28, 2023, he made full restitution for the amount spent with the card.

The judgment for disbarment

In their judgment, the Court of Three Judges highlighted that the presumptive sanction in a case such as Li's is to strike the offender off the roll, and nothing in this case warranted a departure from it.

The judges noted that Li had major depressive disorder and complex post-traumatic stress disorder, but said that there was no causal link between his mental conditions and his offence.

Li has also accepted this point, and accepted that an order to strike him off the roll should be made, the judges added.

His acceptance, along with apologising, pleading guilty, and making full restitution, suggested to them that he recognised the gravity of his offence.

He is also receiving regular psychiatric treatment and attending monthly therapy sessions to address his mental conditions.

These actions do not minimise or excuse his offence, the judges emphasised, but they commended and urged him to continue with these rehabilitative steps.