Singapore jails Chinese national 15 months for role in US$2.2 billion money laundering case
- 45-year-old Zhang Ruijin, linked to Singapore’s largest money laundering case, was given 15 months’ jail time – the harshest sentence in the US$2.2 billion case
- Zhang pleaded guilty to forgery-related charges and for failing to satisfactorily account for property reasonably suspected to be benefits from criminal conduct
A 45-year-old man linked to Singapore’s largest money laundering case was sentenced to 15 months’ jail on Tuesday.
He is the fifth of 10 accused persons to be dealt with in relation to the case.
Zhang Ruijin pleaded guilty on Tuesday to two counts of forgery-related offences and one of failing to satisfactorily account for property reasonably suspected to be benefits from criminal conduct.
Another five similar charges were taken into consideration for his sentencing.
Zhang, a Chinese national, was initially charged with three counts of forgery-related offences and last Friday was handed five additional charges involving forgery and his inability to account for about S$36 million (US$26.4 million) that flowed into his bank accounts.
Zhang’s 15-month jail term – to be backdated by about eight months to the date of his arrest last August – is the harshest meted out so far in relation to the S$3 billion (US$2.2 billion) case.