Director of autism day activity centre jailed for cheating social service agency of S$24,750

SINGAPORE: The director of an autism spectrum disorder day activity centre was sentenced to three months and two weeks' jail on Friday (Oct 9) for cheating the social service agency that operated the centre out of S$24,750 (US$19,330).

Steven Tan Teck Liang, 63, was the director of Blue Cross Thong Kheng Autism Spectrum Disorder Day Activity Centre at the time of the offence. He had been in the position since 2017.  

Tan pleaded guilty to an amalgamated charge of cheating at the State Courts. The names of others involved in this case have been redacted from court documents.

The social service agency he cheated was Thong Kheng Welfare Services Society, which operates centres serving people with special needs, including the one Tan was director of.

In April 2024, Blue Cross hired six new foreign workers, and Tan arranged for them to be housed at his mother's flat. He did not tell Thong Kheng Welfare Services Society that the flat belonged to his mother.

Tan asked his brother to draw up a tenancy agreement dated Apr 1, 2024, and arranged for it to be sent to the chief executive of Thong Kheng Welfare Services Society.

The CEO signed the agreement, which provided for monthly rent of S$2,750 and a rental deposit of S$2,750 for a 12-month tenancy period from Apr 1, 2024, to Mar 31, 2025.

Rental payments were to be made into a joint bank account held by Tan's mother and his brother.

The workers ultimately did not stay at the flat as they found it to be in an unacceptable condition, the prosecution said.

However, Tan did not inform Thong Kheng Welfare Services Society of this. He arranged alternative accommodation for the workers, incurring S$6,868 in expenses.

He then signed off on seven payment vouchers covering eight months of rent from April to November 2024, as well as the rental deposit, totalling S$24,750.

The vouchers were approved and the payments disbursed into the joint bank account.

Of the amount, S$6,868 went towards paying for the workers' alternative accommodation, while the remaining S$17,882 was retained in the joint bank account.

The president of Thong Kheng Welfare Services Society lodged a police report on Dec 2, 2024, after being informed that the tenancy arrangement for the flat had been improperly obtained.

Tan has since made full restitution of the S$17,882.

The prosecution sought three to four months' jail for Tan, arguing that he deceived Thong Kheng Welfare Services Society while he was a director of Blue Cross, which it said amounted to an abuse of trust.

"The accused held a management position in Blue Cross Thong Kheng Autism Spectrum Disorder Day Activity Centre and was the person responsible for checking the payment vouchers before they were forwarded to the approving authority," said Deputy Public Prosecutor Law Yan An.

The prosecution said there would have been reliance on Tan because of his position, as he was supposed to ensure that payments were proper.

The prosecutor pointed out that Tan offended on seven occasions over around seven months, and "each repetition represented a fresh decision to perpetuate the deception despite multiple opportunities to desist".

Cheating and dishonestly inducing a person to deliver property is punishable by up to 10 years' jail and a fine.