Indian Man Faces Jail in Singapore For Using Rs 16 Lakh Wrongly Credited To His Account

Periyasamy spent part of the money to settle his debts and sent the rest to his family in India, fully aware that the funds were not his

A 47-year-old Indian national, Periyasamy Mathiyazhagan, has been sentenced to nine weeks in jail in Singapore after failing to return SGD 25,000 (about Rs 16 lakh) that was mistakenly transferred to his bank account last year. According to The Straits Times, Periyasamy spent part of the money to settle his debts and sent the rest to his family in India, fully aware that the funds were not his.

The error occurred when an administrator at a plumbing and engineering firm, where Periyasamy had worked between 2021 and 2022, accidentally transferred the money to his account on April 6, 2023. The woman, whose identity has been withheld, had intended to send the sum to the company’s bank account to repay a personal loan.

After realising the mistake, a company director informed the administrator that the firm had not received the funds. She immediately reported the error to Periyasamy's bank and requested the return of the money. On April 10, 2023, the bank sent a letter to Periyasamy, notifying him of the mistake and the request for reimbursement. However, the letter was mistakenly sent to his former employer’s address, as it was listed as his last known address in the bank's records.

By May 9, after receiving no response, the bank informed the administrator that her request had been rejected, prompting her to file a police complaint on May 23.

Investigations revealed that Periyasamy was aware of the erroneous transfer as early as April 2023. Despite this, he transferred the funds to another account in four separate transactions on May 11 and 12. When confronted by the company’s director and handed the bank’s letter, Periyasamy admitted he had used the funds to clear debts.

In a police interview in November 2023, Periyasamy disclosed that he had also sent part of the money to his family in India. He asked for more time to repay the full amount and proposed a repayment plan of SGD 1,500 per month.

This case bears similarities to another incident last year involving a 26-year-old Indian national, Bhambri Kunal, who was also sentenced to nine weeks in jail for dealing with criminal proceeds. Kunal had withdrawn over SGD 26,000 (about Rs 16.7 lakh) from bank accounts linked to fraud victims in the US.

Periyasamy pleaded guilty to the charges of misappropriating the funds and was handed his sentence in court this week.