SINGAPORE – In a bid to recover a loan of around $25,000, a woman lured her female debtor to a warehouse, where the victim was blindfolded and restrained with plastic cable ties for about five hours.
The ordeal left the 49-year-old Singaporean victim with marks on her limbs that took two months to fade. She also had facial bruises that took two weeks to clear.
On Dec 3, her 43-year-old creditor, Lin Mei, was sentenced to 10 months’ jail.
The Taiwanese woman, who masterminded the crime, had pleaded guilty to one count of wrongfully confining the victim.
Lin’s accomplice, Chinese national Wu Zhibing, 36, was earlier sentenced to eight months’ jail.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Darren Sim told the court that the victim and Lin knew each other through illegal gambling activities.
On Feb 27, 2024, Wu, who was Lin’s housemate at the time, told her that he wanted to return to his home country as his work permit had expired.
According to court documents, Lin had borrowed an undisclosed amount from Wu.
The DPP said: “Lin informed Wu that someone owed her $25,000 and if he helped her to teach that person a lesson, she would return Wu the money she owed him.”
Taking instructions from Lin, Wu went to a warehouse in Jalan Buroh, near Jurong Port Road, where he covered the CCTV cameras with pieces of cloth.
