S$3B money laundering convict expelled from Cambodia following deportation from Singapore

SINGAPORE: Zhang Ruijin, one of the ten individuals convicted in Singapore’s landmark S$3 billion money laundering case, who was deported to Cambodia last month, was reportedly expelled from the country on Tuesday (16 July), according to a recent report.

According to a Facebook post by Cambodia’s General Department of Immigration, authorities acted upon receiving information about a Chinese national involved in money laundering entering the country.

The GDI noted that Cambodia is also a member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF), an international organization combating money laundering and financial crimes.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sar Sokha instructed the GDI to swiftly investigate and locate the Chinese national for deportation.

Following this directive, the Investigation and Enforcement Department conducted a search and arrest operation, resulting in the detention of 45-year-old Zhang.

GDI revealed that Zhang arrived in Cambodia on 15 June, and he was arrested by Cambodian authorities and deported on 16 July 2024, through the Phnom Penh International Airport.

The GDI did not specify Zhang’s deportation destination but noted that he holds a passport from Saint Kitts and Nevis, a small Caribbean island nation.

Zhang was the fifth of ten accused individuals to be dealt with by Singapore’s courts in connection with the S$3 billion money laundering case.

He forfeited around S$118 million in assets to the state, which amounted to about 90 per cent of the S$131 million worth of assets originally seized by the police.

The case, which concluded in June, involved ten foreigners and billions of dollars worth of assets, including hard cash, luxury properties, branded goods, cryptocurrency, and alcohol.

Approximately S$944 million (US$697 million) in assets seized in relation to the ten criminals involved in one of Singapore’s largest money laundering probes were forfeited to the state.

Seven individuals convicted in the S$3 billion money laundering case, including Zhang, were deported from Singapore to Cambodia. The others are Su Baolin, Su Haijin, Su Wenqiang, Wang Baosen, Chen Qingyuan, and Lin Baoying.

Vang Shuiming was deported to Japan, while Wang Dehai was deported to the UK. They are all barred from re-entering Singapore.

Only Su Jianfeng, a 36-year-old Vanuatu national with roots in Fujian, China, remains in Singapore. He was sentenced to 17 months’ jail last month.

Investigations are ongoing against 17 other suspects who are not currently in Singapore. The assets linked to these suspects account for the remaining portion of the total S$3 billion seized.

During the parliamentary session on 2 July, Minister of State for Home Affairs Sun Xueling informed Parliament that individuals with multiple passports can indicate their preferred deportation country, but Singapore will deport them to nations most likely to accept them.

Ms Sun clarified in response to a parliamentary question filed by Ms Sylvia Lim, Workers’ Party MP for Aljunied GRC, that it is not simply a matter of offenders stating “I choose and therefore I will be sent there.”

She explained that the choice is subject to an assessment by the Ministry. This assessment considers whether the individual can be admitted into the chosen country based on their travel document.

Ms Lim also raised concerns about the deportation of individuals to Cambodia who did not hold Cambodian passports. Ms Sun later confirmed that these individuals did not hold Cambodian passports but possessed valid travel documents or passports that met Cambodia’s admission requirements.

She affirmed that Singapore authorities’ main priority is to ensure the effective and swift deportation of foreigners once they have completed their sentences.