SINGAPORE, Oct 29 — A Thai woman has been sentenced today to 14 years in prison in Singapore for orchestrating a luxury goods scam that defrauded nearly 200 victims of over S$25 million (RM82.5 million).
The Straits Times reported that Pansuk Siriwipa, 30, appeared via video link during the sentencing on October 29, nodding as the judge delivered the verdict.
This comes after she pleaded guilty to 30 charges, including cheating and fraudulent trading, on October 21 while 150 additional charges were considered during sentencing.
Pansuk and her Singaporean husband, Pi Jiapeng, 29, gained notoriety in 2022 for their involvement in a S$32 million scheme.
Between May and August of that year, 187 police reports were filed against their companies, Tradenation and Tradeluxury, for failing to deliver products after full payments were made.
The couple married in September 2020 and began Tradenation in May 2021, focusing on luxury watches.
Pansuk later launched Tradeluxury to sell luxury bags.
Despite financial struggles, she continued accepting orders, diverting funds for personal expenses, including a S$58,000 private jet flight and a S$2.3 million home in Bangkok.
According to the Straits Times, Deputy Public Prosecutor David Koh revealed that by March 2022, the companies had liabilities exceeding S$9.3 million while their assets were valued at just S$350,000.
He described the operations as a Ponzi scheme, ensnaring more victims as they attempted to make payments to earlier customers.
Koh noted that Pansuk continued to draw a monthly salary of S$10,000 while paying her husband between S$40,000 and S$52,000 monthly, despite the companies’ dire financial situation.
During the investigation, the couple fled to Malaysia in July 2022, hiding in a lorry’s container.
Two Malaysians who assisted their escape were sentenced to a year in jail in September 2022.
Pi’s case remains pending, as he faces nine charges related to the scam.