Jail for woman, 34, who forged medical documents in bid to quickly withdraw CPF funds
Although the CPF Board (CPFB) saw through the ruse and did not disburse any funds to her, the prosecution said Nasuha Zakaria's crime constituted serious mischief.
On Aug 12, the 34-year-old was sentenced to five months and 10 weeks' jail after she pleaded guilty to one forgery charge and two unrelated charges of theft.
Four other charges of theft, forgery and fraudulently possessing property were taken into consideration during sentencing.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Nivethaa Ravintharan said the scheme Nasuha tried to exploit was intended for individuals with a reduced life expectancy, those who are permanently unfit for work or those lacking mental capacity.
The prosecutor added: "CPF is a government body and this is a situation where the public confidence is at stake."
The court heard that in 2021, the CPFB received two medical certification forms from Nasuha.
The forms were purportedly issued by doctors from the Singapore General Hospital and certified that Nasuha suffered from a respiratory illness.
When verifying the authenticity of these documents, CPFB discovered the signatures on the doctor's columns did not seem legitimate.
CPFB wrote to SGH, which replied that none of their doctors had signed on the two documents.
It was then that Nasuha admitted she had signed the documents herself as she wanted to quickly withdraw funds from her CPF account.
According to CPF's website, successful applicants under the scheme may withdraw $5,000 or more.
DPP Nivethaa said: "While there was no monetary loss on the part of CPF, such attempts should be strongly deterred as it endangers CPF's primary interest in ensuring the long-term financial security of individuals."
Separately, Nasuha committed two theft offences in January.
On Jan 7, she entered an unlocked office in a commercial building in Changi Road when its staff had left for lunch and stole two laptops and an iPad amounting to about $4,500.
Using the "Find my iPhone" app, a staff member found that one of the items was at Nasuha's residential address. She was subsequently arrested.
But she struck again on Jan 25, this time stealing a mobile phone and $800 cash from a store in Lorong 11 Geylang when the store owner was not at the counter.
The owner saw the taxi she fled in and reported it to the police. She was arrested but the stolen items were not recovered.
The court heard that Nasuha was previously fined for theft and jailed for abetment of cheating.
Ms Victoria Tay from the Public Defender's Office said her client, who is married with a daughter, has plans to continue her studies and find proper employment moving forward.
"This is going to be the end of her criminal behaviour. She is committed to changing her ways," said Ms Tay.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
AsiaOne
18 hours ago
- AsiaOne
Jail for woman who forged medical documents in bid to quickly withdraw her CPF funds, Singapore News
SINGAPORE — In a ploy to withdraw money from her Central Provident Fund (CPF) account before the permitted age of 55, a woman forged two medical documents claiming she had a respiratory illness. Although the CPF Board (CPFB) saw through the ruse and did not disburse any funds to her, the prosecution said Nasuha Zakaria's crime constituted serious mischief. On Aug 12, the 34-year-old was sentenced to five months and 10 weeks' jail after she pleaded guilty to one forgery charge and two unrelated charges of theft. Four other charges of theft, forgery and fraudulently possessing property were taken into consideration during sentencing. Deputy Public Prosecutor Nivethaa Ravintharan said the scheme Nasuha tried to exploit was intended for individuals with a reduced life expectancy, those who are permanently unfit for work or those lacking mental capacity. The prosecutor added: "CPF is a government body and this is a situation where the public confidence is at stake." The court heard that in 2021, the CPFB received two medical certification forms from Nasuha. The forms were purportedly issued by doctors from the Singapore General Hospital and certified that Nasuha suffered from a respiratory illness. When verifying the authenticity of these documents, CPFB discovered the signatures on the doctor's columns did not seem legitimate. CPFB wrote to SGH, which replied that none of their doctors had signed on the two documents. It was then that Nasuha admitted she had signed the documents herself as she wanted to quickly withdraw funds from her CPF account. According to CPF's website, successful applicants under the scheme may withdraw $5,000 or more. DPP Nivethaa said: "While there was no monetary loss on the part of CPF, such attempts should be strongly deterred as it endangers CPF's primary interest in ensuring the long-term financial security of individuals." Separately, Nasuha committed two theft offences in January. On Jan 7, she entered an unlocked office in a commercial building in Changi Road when its staff had left for lunch and stole two laptops and an iPad amounting to about $4,500. Using the "Find my iPhone" app, a staff member found that one of the items was at Nasuha's residential address. She was subsequently arrested. But she struck again on Jan 25, this time stealing a mobile phone and $800 cash from a store in Lorong 11 Geylang when the store owner was not at the counter. The owner saw the taxi she fled in and reported it to the police. She was arrested but the stolen items were not recovered. The court heard that Nasuha was previously fined for theft and jailed for abetment of cheating. Victoria Tay from the Public Defender's Office said her client, who is married with a daughter, has plans to continue her studies and find proper employment moving forward. "This is going to be the end of her criminal behaviour. She is committed to changing her ways," said Tay. [[nid:719899]] This article was first published in The Straits Times . Permission required for reproduction.
New Paper
a day ago
- New Paper
Jail for woman, 34, who forged medical documents in bid to quickly withdraw CPF funds
In a ploy to withdraw money from her Central Provident Fund (CPF) account before the permitted age of 55, a woman forged two medical documents claiming she had a respiratory illness. Although the CPF Board (CPFB) saw through the ruse and did not disburse any funds to her, the prosecution said Nasuha Zakaria's crime constituted serious mischief. On Aug 12, the 34-year-old was sentenced to five months and 10 weeks' jail after she pleaded guilty to one forgery charge and two unrelated charges of theft. Four other charges of theft, forgery and fraudulently possessing property were taken into consideration during sentencing. Deputy Public Prosecutor Nivethaa Ravintharan said the scheme Nasuha tried to exploit was intended for individuals with a reduced life expectancy, those who are permanently unfit for work or those lacking mental capacity. The prosecutor added: "CPF is a government body and this is a situation where the public confidence is at stake." The court heard that in 2021, the CPFB received two medical certification forms from Nasuha. The forms were purportedly issued by doctors from the Singapore General Hospital and certified that Nasuha suffered from a respiratory illness. When verifying the authenticity of these documents, CPFB discovered the signatures on the doctor's columns did not seem legitimate. CPFB wrote to SGH, which replied that none of their doctors had signed on the two documents. It was then that Nasuha admitted she had signed the documents herself as she wanted to quickly withdraw funds from her CPF account. According to CPF's website, successful applicants under the scheme may withdraw $5,000 or more. DPP Nivethaa said: "While there was no monetary loss on the part of CPF, such attempts should be strongly deterred as it endangers CPF's primary interest in ensuring the long-term financial security of individuals." Separately, Nasuha committed two theft offences in January. On Jan 7, she entered an unlocked office in a commercial building in Changi Road when its staff had left for lunch and stole two laptops and an iPad amounting to about $4,500. Using the "Find my iPhone" app, a staff member found that one of the items was at Nasuha's residential address. She was subsequently arrested. But she struck again on Jan 25, this time stealing a mobile phone and $800 cash from a store in Lorong 11 Geylang when the store owner was not at the counter. The owner saw the taxi she fled in and reported it to the police. She was arrested but the stolen items were not recovered. The court heard that Nasuha was previously fined for theft and jailed for abetment of cheating. Ms Victoria Tay from the Public Defender's Office said her client, who is married with a daughter, has plans to continue her studies and find proper employment moving forward. "This is going to be the end of her criminal behaviour. She is committed to changing her ways," said Ms Tay.
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Straits Times
Man on trial for stalking woman blasted by judge for asking scandalous questions in court
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Lucas Seng Yong Yi, 39, had also posed scandalous and irrelevant questions at length to the prosecution's witnesses. SINGAPORE - A man who stalked a former co-worker for five years continued harassing her even during his trial, where he represented himself and asked her irrelevant questions over seven days of cross-examination. Lucas Seng Yong Yi, 39, also subjected other prosecution witnesses to similar antics by asking them scandalous questions during the trial, which spanned over 70 days from April 2021 to September 2024. Seng was sentenced to 18 months' jail by a district judge in late 2024 after he was convicted of three charges of stalking under the Protection from Harassment Act. Justice Vincent Hoong blasted Seng's behaviour in court in a written decision on Aug 8 after dismissing the offender's appeal against conviction and sentence on July 30. The High Court judge said Seng's conduct at the trial was 'outrageous'. Justice Hoong agreed with the lower court that Seng's deplorable conduct during the trial was an aggravating factor in the sentencing. He said Seng had engaged in victim-blaming, such as contending that the victim had brought some of the acts of harassment on herself because she uploaded her resume onto LinkedIn. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Luxury items seized in $3b money laundering case handed over to Deloitte for liquidation Singapore NEL resumes service after hours-long power fault; single-track service on Sengkang-Punggol LRT Singapore Plan to base Singapore's F-15 fighter jets in Guam cancelled Singapore Hyflux investigator 'took advantage' of Olivia Lum's inability to recall events: Davinder Singh Singapore Man who stabbed son-in-law to death at Boon Tat Street in 2017 dies, aged 80 Singapore Scoot to launch flights to Chiang Rai, Okinawa, Tokyo-Haneda, boost frequency to other places Singapore Off-duty SCDF officer dies after accident in Punggol; 15-year-old pillion rider taken to hospital Singapore Jail for woman who forged medical documents in bid to quickly withdraw her CPF funds Seng also posed scandalous and irrelevant questions at length to the prosecution's witnesses. For instance, he alleged that a male witness was homosexual and was lying in court about being the woman's boyfriend. Seng asked the man if he knew the victim's 'cup size' and if he liked 'sexy men'. He also asked the victim's cousin whether he could kiss her. Seng also made baseless allegations that the prosecution, the police, and various witnesses were fabricating evidence and conspiring against him. 'His conduct at the trial wasted judicial time and resources, caused annoyance to witnesses (including the victim), and undermined the sanctity of the proceedings. It also evidenced a clear lack of remorse,' said Justice Hoong. While self-represented individuals are given some latitude in presenting their cases, that did not give Seng the right to harass the witnesses with repetitive or irrelevant questions, he said. The judge noted that Seng was told repeatedly by the trial judge that certain lines of questioning were irrelevant to the issues to be determined. Justice Hoong added: 'By frequently raising scandalous allegations without any reasonable grounds, the appellant only harmed his own case by demonstrating that he did not have a cogent defence that cast doubt on the prosecution's evidence and had to resort to accusing the prosecution's witnesses of unfounded conspiracies against him.' He noted that trial judges should not intervene excessively in the questioning of witnesses to avoid giving the impression that they are predisposed towards a particular outcome. However, if the court steps in when the questions are not relevant, intended to insult or annoy, or needlessly repetitive, this would not amount to improper judicial interference or 'descending into the arena', he said. Between 2015 and 2020, Seng repeatedly sent the woman text messages, ordered sample products to be delivered to her home, and mailed her his court papers to pressure her into dropping criminal charges against him. In his defence, Seng argued that he believed he was the woman's boyfriend. He said he formed this impression because of certain text messages she had sent him. Justice Hoong said Seng could not have reasonably believed that he was in a romantic relationship with the victim, as the woman had sent him multiple text messages in which she clearly stated that she was not romantically interested in him. Even if Seng thought that he was the victim's boyfriend, his text messages to her would not be reasonable, given her unequivocal demands for him to stop messaging her, said the judge. Seng also claimed that the woman had set a trap to frame him on in April 2017, by stalking him at his void deck, and that the police reports she filed against him were a 'test of love'. The victim said she saw him on the bus and decided to confront him. Her boyfriend, who later joined them at the void deck, corroborated this. But Seng claimed that the man was not a credible witness because if he was attracted to men, he could not have been the victim's boyfriend, and therefore must have been instigated by the woman to lie in court.
