Fifty-two Singaporeans have been arrested and detained in Guangxi, China, following a Chinese law enforcement operation targeting suspected pyramid scheme activities and related offences.
Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) and the Singapore Police Force (SPF) announced the case in a joint statement on Friday, 4 September.
The Chinese authorities are still investigating, while SPF has contacted its counterparts in China for more information.
Singapore Officials Have Visited All 52 Detainees
MFA said it has been engaging the Chinese authorities through the Singapore Embassy in Beijing and the Singapore Consulate-General in Guangzhou.
Second Minister for Foreign Affairs and Home Affairs Sim Ann said consular officers have made three visits to all 52 Singaporeans.
The visits included checking on their well-being, passing requests and family messages to the detainees, and helping with administrative matters.
MFA is also communicating with their next of kin in Singapore. Ms Sim said she has personally met the families of most of those detained.
She stressed that Singapore would continue providing consular assistance, but would not interfere with China's investigations or judicial process.
At the same time, Singapore will continue to emphasise to the Chinese authorities that the Singaporeans should receive due process under Chinese law.
Detainees Reportedly Held Since At Least Mid-July
The Singapore authorities did not announce when the 52 people were first detained.
However, three sources told CNA that they had been held since at least the middle of July.
Responding to questions about the case on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said China deals with cases involving foreign citizens according to its laws and protects the lawful rights of those involved.
When CNA sought details including what charges the Singaporeans could face, when the investigation began and whether other nationalities were involved, the Chinese Foreign Ministry referred further questions to the relevant authorities.
CNA Reports Alleged Scheme Is Linked to '1040 Sunshine Project'
Neither MFA nor SPF identified the specific pyramid scheme that the 52 Singaporeans were suspected of being involved with.
CNA separately reported that it understands the case is connected to the “1040 Sunshine Project”, a long-running pyramid scheme that Chinese authorities have previously targeted.
In a separate investigation, CNA interviewed at least a dozen Singaporeans who said they had been approached about supposed business or investment opportunities linked to Nanning, the capital of Guangxi.
Their accounts generally involved being introduced to the opportunity by other Singaporeans before travelling to Nanning for meetings and presentations.
Some interviewees said participants could pay around S$30,000 or S$50,000 to join different tiers, with earnings dependent on recruiting additional participants.
CNA said the way the programme was described to its interviewees resembled the scheme that it understands is linked to the arrests. The people interviewed by CNA were not presented as the 52 detainees, and the official Singapore statement did not confirm a link to the named “1040” scheme.
Singaporeans Warned About Recruitment-Based Schemes
Ms Sim urged Singaporeans to be cautious when considering business or investment schemes either at home or overseas.
In particular, she highlighted schemes that require participants to recruit others, make large upfront payments or are promoted with unusually high returns.
MFA and SPF also reminded Singaporeans that they are subject to the laws of whichever country they are travelling or living in.
Investigations into the 52 Singaporeans remain ongoing.
