The founder of commodity firm Agritrade, Ng Say Peck, 72, has been arrested and charged in court after more than five years on the run, the Singapore Police Force said on Tuesday (December 2). Ng is the second person from Agritrade to be charged in connection with a cheating case that involved multiple banks and financial institutions worldwide.
Background
Agritrade, which traded in coal and palm oil, has been at the centre of investigations since January 2020. Police launched investigations into Ng and other individuals for trade financing fraud after receiving multiple reports between January and August 2020 from banks and finance companies that had extended credit facilities to Agritrade.
The company’s former chief financial officer, Lulu Lim Beng Kim, was sentenced to 20 years in jail in 2023 for her role in the same case.
How He Got Arrested?
Ng had left Singapore shortly before investigations began. He was arrested upon arrival in Singapore on Monday after being deported from China, with the cooperation and assistance of China’s Ministry of Public Security, the police said. Ng, a former director at Agritrade, had both a warrant of arrest and an Interpol red notice issued against him.
He is now facing 10 counts of cheating and is accused of deceiving the digital financing platform Funding Societies. Funding Societies had entered into a credit facility arrangement with Agritrade after being shown finance invoices that were supposedly assigned to the company. These invoices were later discovered to be fictitious, resulting in Funding Societies disbursing a total of US$8 million over 10 transactions to Agritrade between August and November 2019. According to the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority’s Bizfile portal, Agritrade is currently in insolvency.
David Chew, director of the Commercial Affairs Department, said: “The police will spare no effort, working within the ambit of our laws, to bring criminals hiding overseas to face justice in Singapore.” He added that the police work closely with Interpol and foreign counterparts to detect and deport fugitives. Mr Chew also expressed his appreciation for the “strong support and assistance” from China’s Ministry of Public Security in Ng’s deportation.
Those convicted of cheating in such cases in Singapore face a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine.
