HE COULDN’T help but gawp when he first stepped into the Sentosa bungalow belonging to a “Fujian gang” member.

The source (Source A), who set foot in the property in a professional capacity last year, said: “The furnishings are very expensive. All the small appliances and toy cars lying around are branded. Even the slippers are Hermes.” A search online shows that a pair of Hermes slippers costs upwards of S$1,000 (US$736).

Laundering tools of choice

The term “Fujian gang” gained infamy following a massive Singapore police anti-money laundering blitz in August. The raid ended with the arrest of 10 suspects who were charged with various offences. Additionally, police seized assets worth S$1.8 billion relating to the case. Source A said launderers can use businesses as a front to clean dirty money, with profitability seldom a criterion. In fact, loss-incurring businesses “provide a legitimate reason to transfer funds to the (overseas) entities”. 

He explained that for Chinese citizens, there was a limit for cross-border personal money transfers. “Those in the triads could provide documents claiming they needed to transfer capital to shore up the businesses overseas. They would use all sorts of channels to transfer illicit money here.”

He added that such businesses could even be highly visible – such as stores along Orchard Road and in other upmarket malls in Singapore, where rents could be tens of thousands of dollars a month.  

There are tell-tale signs. “Many of these stores sell trinkets with low profit – far from enough to cover the cost of rent.” While he declined to provide names, the source said: “The stores are mostly empty, and don’t even look like they are operating a business.”

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He cited another example where a food and beverage business bucked the Covid trend, expanding four to five outlets during the period of the pandemic. “A lot of businesses were closing, save for this one which expanded instead. It didn’t even do business remotely through online channels during the lockdown; wouldn’t anyone find that strange?”

According to him, companies from the education sector are also popular targets because of their “squeaky-clean image”. The teachers would be approached directly, with offers to set up businesses. 

Real estate

Real estate has traditionally been a popular means to wash illicit money. A real estate agent (Source B) said property was popular not only for the large sums involved, but “the owner can enjoy the comfort of a house, and could even sell it for a profit when prices go up”. One only needs a team with an accountant and a lawyer.

He added that over the past few years, Singapore property purchases with large sums of cash – similar to those by the “Fujian gang” – have not been uncommon. But it is difficult for real estate agents to act as “gatekeepers”.

“The average real estate agent would not ask their clients where their money came from, for fear of offending them,” he noted.

“Should a real estate agent face large transactions out of the norm, or if the client pays a large sum by cash, he is obliged to report to the company or to the financial authorities. But there is no clear definition of a ‘large’ transaction, and agents often have to make a judgement call. Some would choose not to inform the authorities in order to secure large commission fees. Once you alert the authorities, the deal might fall through and the client would blame you.”

Even when banks ask for the origins of funds, the deal in question can still go through with the right paperwork, Source B said.

As for conveyancing, he noted that buyers “would pick the smaller law firms” as the latter may not have the resources for “comprehensive background checks”.

Laundering through property does not stop at buying and selling. Rents can be a big expense that “can be put under the company account” and bulk up accounting numbers, the agent said.

For the larger market, such high rents are distorting. This handful of wealthy Chinese has ruined affordability, he said, as “rents for GCBs have never exceeded S$100,000”.  

Property portal Edgeprop reported in June last year that a Good Class Bungalow (GCB) in Queen Astrid Park was rented to a rich Chinese for S$200,000 a month, amounting to S$2.4 million a year. Lianhe Zaobao also reported that in February this year, GCBs in Dalvey Estate and Fourth Avenue were rented out for S$150,000 per month. 

While some GCB owners are particular about their tenants, things get tricky when a company signs the lease. And Source B said that as long as the landlord/owner is able to prove to the police he has no ties to a criminal tenant, he is free to take back possession of the property and rent it to others.

Casinos and nightclubs 

One other favourite conduit for laundering money is casinos.

Source B explained: “Someone would bring a million to the casino, split the money among a few people, with each gambling away tens of thousands of dollars. Even if they end up losing S$200,000, the remaining S$800,000 would be successfully laundered.”

The agent, who has handled property deals for wealthy Chinese, said most of his clients hail from Shanghai and Beijing. Having observed the workings of rich Chinese businessmen over the years, he noted that those suspected of illegal businesses would also launder money through nightclubs.

“They would support each other. I would bring my friends to your nightclub today, and you would reciprocate by bringing your buddies to mine the next day. Spending tens of thousands of dollars on each outing is the norm.”

Taking over clan associations

Source A, who used to be active in some organisations and clan associations, stopped doing so a few years back when he got wind that several of them had been overrun by the rich Chinese, including members of the “Fujian gang”.

The nature of these organisations and associations has changed, he added. They are supposed to have traditional and cultural links to certain Chinese provinces or areas, “but their members and those they now serve do not belong to these regions”.

“In the past, members voted for a chairperson. Now, anyone can have the title of an ‘honorary chairperson’ just by donating tens of thousands of dollars.” 

Lavish lifestyles

Source C, who works as a driver at Sentosa, often hangs around the restaurants near W Singapore, with rows of sport utility vehicles (SUVs) waiting in the free parking space.

From his chats with the drivers, he said these petrol guzzlers are used to ferry wealthy Chinese around. The drivers are Malaysians drawing S$4,100 and S$4,300 a month. They work in two shifts: the morning shift takes the kids to international schools, kindergartens or enrichment classes; and the night shift covers the bosses’ social engagements.

The drivers said some bosses even hire Tsinghua University graduates to help them prepare English documents and cheques.

Source C said that high-end properties in Sentosa Cove complete with a swimming pool and yacht berth cost at least S$20 million each. He once drove into the area and saw that “in addition to a few luxury cars parked in front of their bungalows, there were Bearbricks in the living room as well”.

These wealthy bosses are believed to be generous, handing out S$1,000 birthday red packets to their drivers and the latter’s children.

Aside from drivers, the “Fujian gang” also hired bodyguards and personal assistants. Source B said the stacks of hundred-dollar bills seized by the police were used by the accused for petty cash. “They often need a lot of such ‘petty cash’ for tipping.”

Socialising

The “Fujian gang” has its own circles here, and does not mingle with the Chinese from other provinces or cities, such as Jiangsu and Shanghai.

Source A thinks this is because they are rough around the edges and viewed as “uncultured” given their garish cars and loud dressing. He likened the “Fujian gang” to “ah bengs” (loud, unsophisticated and generally gang-related men).

“They choose matte finishes for their luxury cars and have peculiar colour preferences as well, such as green and yellow.”  

Another professional who frequents Sentosa Golf Club said: “Their Rolls-Royces have garish colour combinations, such as black and pink. Their licence plates are often a single number or repeated double digits. The type that makes you go ‘Wow, what a beautiful number’.” 

She could tell the car owners were not local Chinese because they were “very flamboyant, decked out in branded clothes from head to toe”.

“Even their golf clubs are branded.”

A separate source said the “Fujian gang” was exceptionally fond of cuisine from their hometown, and would fly in top chefs from five-star hotels in the Fujian province to cook for them. The source added that members of the “Fujian gang” love karaoke, and would even pay a handsome sum to fly popular singers in from the region to perform in their homes. 

Whiskies worth S$600,000

Among the police pictures of the seized assets was an eye-catching one of a roomful of whiskies and cigars.

Experts were able to identify roughly 20 bottles of Macallan 30 Years Old Sherry Oak, costing about S$13,000 apiece. There were about 38 bottles of Macallan 25 Years Old, and roughly 60 bottles of Macallan 18 Years Old, each costing about S$5,000 to S$6,000 and S$1,000 respectively.

A local whisky collector with 30 years of experience observed that none was considered rare or uncommon.

“This is a whisky storeroom and not a collection. If you look at the wine rack, it just screams the word ‘expensive’. It doesn’t show anything about the collector’s preference or character. Otherwise, it could just be that this person loves drinking one type of whisky,” he said wryly.

Based on rough calculations, the liquors are worth at least S$600,000. The boxes of cigars were also worth several hundreds of thousands of dollars, including 30 to 40 boxes of Cohiba Cuban cigars costing over S$4,000 a box.  

A local baijiu merchant with two decades of experience also identified four bottles of Moutai 30 Years Old in the photo. Based on the seal, he said they were Moutai 30 Years Old, currently sold for about S$6,000 at wine shops, or up to S$15,000 at a high-end restaurant in Singapore.

The merchant said: “Aged moutai is uncommon in the local market. Customers have to order a few months in advance. Even if it is in stock, we normally prioritise frequent buyers. There’s always a market for such aged wine.”

He believes that the “Fujian gang” must have parallel-imported these aged moutai through their own channels. A butler who used to manage the chores of a wealthy Chinese said that her boss’ fine wines were either flown in from overseas or imported in bulk by importers. 

“There’s a great big world with so many choices. Since price is no object, how could they be buying liquor only in Singapore?” THINKCHINA

This article was first published in Lianhe Zaobao.