Jail, fine for Myanmarese man linked to case involving three bank accounts that received over US$531mil in total

The Star

2 days ago

SINGAPORE: A man linked to a case involving three bank accounts that received more than US$531 million (over S$680 million) in total was sentenced to two years' jail and a fine of $109,000 on Wednesday (July 30).
Myanmar national Nyan Win, 61, who had pleaded guilty to two counts of carrying on a business of providing a payment service in Singapore without a licence, will have to spend an additional six months behind bars should he fail to pay the fine.
His Singaporean accomplice Zin Nwe Nyunt, 58, was sentenced to a year and six months' jail on July 14.
Court documents stated that Nyan Win, a Singapore permanent resident, and Zin Nwe Nyunt's husband were childhood friends.
At the time of the offences, Nyan Win was a director at Piyar International, a company that dealt with motor vehicles.
In 2019, another Myanmar national known as Ko Phillip, who operated a commodities trading business, told Nyan Win he was looking for someone to incorporate a company in Singapore to assist in the operations of Ko Phillip's business.
This company would then create corporate bank accounts that be used to receive and transfer funds under Ko Phillip's instructions.
He offered Nyan Win a commission of 0.5 Myanmar kyat (S$0.0003) per US dollar received under this arrangement.
Nyan Win, who was interested in this opportunity, was uncertain whether he could set up a corporate bank account through Piyar International.
Without revealing details, Deputy Public Prosecutor Ryan Lim said this was because banks had previously closed the company's corporate bank accounts.
Nyan Win approached Zin Nwe Nyunt's spouse and told him about this potential business opportunity with Ko Phillip.
As the husband was holding an undisclosed full-time job, he suggested that his wife could assist in the firm's incorporation.
Nyan Win's Singaporean accomplice Zin Nwe Nyunt, 58, was sentenced to a year and six months' jail on July 14. - Photo: ST
It was later agreed between Zin Nwe Nyunt and Nyan Win that the corporate bank accounts would be controlled by Nyan Win. Commissions would then be split between the pair.
Zin Nwe Nyunt incorporated wholesale trading company Unione, and from July 2019 to May 2021, she opened accounts with three different banks through the firm.
She then handed the banking details to Nyan Win, the court heard.
DPP Lim said: 'Across 2020 and 2021, Nyan Win would liaise with Phillip to make arrangements for money to be received into Unione's corporate bank accounts.
'Nyan Win would also receive instructions from Phillip on where to transfer the money once it had been received into the bank accounts. Nyan Win would provide Zin with information regarding the incoming transactions for her to compute the commission amount.'
Between January and July 2020, Nyan Win used one of Unione's bank accounts to receive more than US$150 million before the money was transferred out.
Court documents do not disclose the source of the money.
Following these transactions, Zin Nwe Nyunt made over $56,000 in commissions while Nyan Win received more than $34,000.
On July 21, 2020, the bank closed the account due to the large number of suspicious transactions.
The DPP told the court: 'Zin, Nyan Win and Unione did not have in force a valid licence from the Monetary Authority of Singapore and were not an exempt payment service provider.'
Following the closure of this account, Zin Nwe Nyunt took instructions from Nyan Win and opened a corporate account with another bank.
Between late July 2020 and April 2021, Nyan Win used this account to receive more than US$250 million before the money was transferred out.
Zin Nwe Nyunt received nearly $76,000 in commissions while Nyan Win pocketed more than $50,000.
DPP Lim said that between August 2020 and March 2021, a third bank account was used to receive more than US$127 million. Over $119 million was then transferred out.
In August 2021, the police received information that an Australian scam victim had transferred US$1.8 million to several bank accounts maintained by companies in Singapore.
Investigations revealed three of these firms had transferred over $480,000 to the third bank account.
Investigators then uncovered links between Zin Nwe Nyunt, Unione and Nyan Win. The pair were charged in court in 2023.
On July 30, Nyan Win's bail was set at $20,000, and he was ordered to surrender himself at the State Courts on Aug 7 to begin serving his sentence. - The Straits Times/ANN