A former insurance agent in Singapore is facing multiple charges for allegedly victimising several people, including elderly and illiterate individuals.
Jennifer Toh Suat Leng, 41, is accused of forging insurance policies to cheat an elderly hawker stall helper, her illiterate landlady, and a ride-hailing driver.
Toh pleaded guilty to one count of cheating and three counts of forgery, Yahoo News Singapore reported. Six more charges of a similar nature were considered for her sentencing, which is scheduled on Dec. 9.
From May to December 2013, Toh was an insurance agent for HSBC Singapore, followed by a stint with AIA from January 2014 to June 2016.
In October 2013, Toh booked a ride with Grab and told the driver that she could sell him an insurance plan from HSBC that offered better returns. The driver, who had recently sold his house, was looking to invest the proceeds of the sale. Toh then allegedly forged an HSBC insurance policy and sold it to the driver for SG$32,000. She has yet to make restitution to the driver.
Toh was later accused of cheating her 45-year-old landlady, who was illiterate and worked as a hawker. The victim asked Toh’s help to read letters and pay the bills for her stall and handed the money and her National Registration Identity Card to Toh. However, instead of paying the bills, Toh signed up for two mobile phone plans with Starhub under the victim’s identity, which included two Apple iPhone 6 units worth SG$1,978. Toh later made restitution of SG$5,000 to the hawker.
In 2015, Toh allegedly cheated a 67-year-old hawker stall helper by selling fake policies purported to be from AIA. At the time, Toh was mired in debt with loan sharks and sought to gain money to repay them by forging insurance policies.
On December 15, 2015, Toh presented a fake policy to the elderly victim, claiming that it was an investment policy with guaranteed returns of SG$52,340 after one year, with a premium of SG$50,000. On December 29, 2015, the victim bought a second forged policy with similar terms.
After a few months, the victim and her family confronted Toh and asked why there were no returns on the policies. Toh then admitted that she had used the money for her personal expenses and to pay for her debts. She promised to repay the money within three months so the victim would not report the incident to the police. However, after three months, she did not deliver, prompting the victim to file a complaint with authorities. Toh has since repaid SG$21,200 to the helper.
