Singapore assistant jailed for embezzling S$1.8 million over seven years

Trust turned to betrayal as a personal assistant exploited her role for years. How did her S$1.8 million fraud finally unravel?

, and Administrator

2026 March 23 . 11:07 PM

1 min read

The image shows a woman in a business suit smiling at the camera against a dark background. She... — The image shows a woman in a business suit smiling at the camera against a dark background. She appears to be a certified public accountant, as indicated by the text at the bottom of the image.

Singapore assistant jailed for embezzling S$1.8 million over seven years

A former personal assistant in Singapore has been jailed for stealing over S$1.8 million from her employer. Judy Teh Mui Eng exploited her position to fund her own businesses and family spending. She admitted to 26 charges of forgery and handling criminal proceeds.

The offences took place between June 2010 and April 2017 while Teh worked at a hire-purchase company. Her role involved preparing payment vouchers and cheques, which she manipulated to divert funds. She falsely claimed that payments had been authorised by her boss' brother, a company director.

Teh altered cheque details using erasable ink, replacing the original payees with the names of her own companies. The fraud only came to light in May 2017 after an internal investigation exposed the discrepancies. She later pleaded guilty to 26 charges, with more than 130 similar offences taken into account during sentencing. A Singapore court sentenced her to three years and three months in prison for misappropriating the money. No records show her holding any leadership roles in other companies following her conviction in 2023.

The case highlights how Teh abused her access to financial processes over nearly seven years. Her actions resulted in significant losses for the hire-purchase firm. She will serve her sentence under Singapore's strict anti-fraud laws.