Jail Term Increased for ICA Officer Who Received Cash, Sex as Bribes

An Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officer who received sex and money as bribes to help two foreign sex workers remain in Singapore had his jail term increased to four years on May 27.

- Selina Lum

Teo Hwee Peng, 50, had faced 12 corruption charges over helping Chinese nationals Liang Qinglan and Cheng Wenjuan obtain special passes that allowed them to stay in the country as overstayers.

He was initially sentenced to two years and nine months' jail in 2023, after a district judge convicted him of eight corruption charges and acquitted him of another four charges.

The prosecution appealed to the High Court against the sentence, as well as Teo's acquittal on three charges.

Teo also appealed against his conviction and sentence.

On March 11, High Court Judge Vincent Hoong allowed the prosecution's appeal and overturned the acquittals, which meant Teo was convicted of 11 charges instead of eight. Teo's appeal was dismissed.

On May 27, the prosecution sought between 4½ and 5½ years' jail for Teo.

Deputy Public Prosecutor David Menon said in sentencing arguments that Teo orchestrated a scheme for the overstayers to obtain special passes that allowed them to remain in Singapore, during which time they continued to engage in vice, "actively harming ICA's mission to uphold Singapore's immigration laws".

A special pass allows a foreigner to stay in Singapore for specific purposes, such as assistance in investigations and court attendance, but does not permit the pass holder to work if he or she does not have a valid work pass.