SINGAPORE, June 24 — A 29-year-old man who was lured into a fraudulent scheme to trick tech companies into delivering free laptops via a PayPal glitch has avoided a criminal record after turning himself in.
Jonathan Wee Jianwei was given a short detention order (SDO) of 14 days on Tuesday, along with 70 hours of community service to be completed within a year. An SDO serves as a deterrent by exposing the offender to prison life without leaving a permanent criminal record.
Wee pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to deceive Lenovo, with two additional charges taken into consideration, CNA reported.
The scam began in late 2019, orchestrated by 31-year-old Calvin Fong Jun Jie. Fong targeted his primary school friend, Alden Low Yoong Theng, promising a way to make easy money.
Fong demonstrated a method using PayPal where payments for laptops were deducted from a user’s bank account but, due to a system glitch, were automatically refunded shortly after.
Low subsequently roped in Wee, a former army buddy, in February 2020. The process was clinical: participants linked their bank accounts to PayPal with a minimal balance, and Fong would remotely control their laptops to place orders. Once the devices were delivered, Fong collected them and paid the participants a commission.
Driven by a recruitment bonus of S$100 (RM310) per person, Wee brought four friends into the fold. This expansion led to the delivery of laptops worth S$32,000.
Wee also personally ordered two Microsoft laptops worth over S$3,900 using the same exploit.
The scheme initially took a darker turn in May 2020 when Wee filed a false police report, claiming two laptops were missing from his delivery to facilitate a refund. However, by February 2021, overcome by guilt, Wee lodged a genuine report admitting his role in the fraud.
The prosecution described the case as “exceptional.” Deputy Public Prosecutor Adelle Tai highlighted that the offences would never have come to light if not for Wee’s voluntary confession. She also noted a five-year delay in prosecution that was not the fault of the accused.
In a rare act of accountability, Wee did not just pay for his own crimes; he made full restitution for the debts of the friends he had recruited. In total, Wee paid approximately S$20,000 to Lenovo and Microsoft, ensuring neither company suffered a financial loss.
While he could have faced up to three years in jail for conspiring to cheat, the court opted for the community-based sentence.
Co-conspirator Low has pleaded guilty, and Fong is expected to do so next month.