What do you do when you’ve gambled away most of your money?
- Work harder to pay off your debts
- Ask a friend or loved one for money, and pay them back later
- Cheat Starhub of $200,000 and hope you never get caught
Option 3 seems like the least rational and viable option for most of us, but that’s the one Sim Zong Hui chose.
Racking Up Debts
The 31-year-old began gambling in 2013 and started to lose control from April 2019. He was forced to borrow money from his friends as his losses accumulated.
Then, when his debts reached S$40,000, he came up with a plan to recoup his losses.
Used Starhub Customers’ NRICs to Sign Up For Subscription Plans
At the time, Sim worked at Planet Telecoms, a handphone retailer engaged by StarHub to process its telco contracts.
Sim was typically stationed at Lot 1 Shoppers’ Mall in Chua Chu Kang and Sun Plaza mall in Sembawang.
The first step in Sim’s modus operandi was to scan images of StarHub customers’ NRICs using StarHub’s iDeal system
He would then use their particulars to sign up for new mobile subscription plans under StarHub without their consent.
In other to avoid having to scan an image of the NRICs itself, he would scan a blank paper multiple times.
Sim then entered randomly generated names, and used the addresses of foreign workers’ dormitories.
Then, if required, he made upfront payments to purchase handphones which he would later resell to a Toa Payoh handset retailer shop.
In less than two weeks from 26 June 2019, Sim sold 14 phones valued at S$14,090.
Roped in Ex-colleague
In July that year, Sim came across his ex-colleague from StarHub, who was then working as a director of a family-run company.
Sim attempted to rope him in as an accomplice for his scheme, but as the man had just been released from serving a five-month sentence in jail, he refused.
Then, days later, he changed his mind and agreed.
The accomplice, Benjamin Loh Boon Hong, obtained images of NRICs belonging to debtors who had borrowed money from loan sharks through his prison friend, and later sent them to Sim.
Sim would then use those NRICs to procure more handphones to hand to Loh to sell at various mobile retailers and even on Carousell.
The two men split the profits equally.
Sim managed to get another 157 phones with Loh’s help, cheating the telco of around S$183,000.
Sim said he spent the money to pay off his gambling debts and fund his mother’s kidney dialysis treatment and medication.
Sentenced to 3 Years’ Jail
Sim’s offences only came to light when a StarHub customer complained that her NRIC had been used without her consent.
After launching an internal investigation, StarHub lodged a police report and Sim was later apprehended.
On Monday (22 March), the 31-year-old was sentenced to three years’ jail after pleading guilty to two charges of cheating.
He has since paid back about S$150,000 to StarHub.
Feature Image: Tang Yan Song / Shutterstock.com
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