SINGAPORE: A senior condominium concierge allegedly stole valuable items worth more than $2 million. This is in addition to accusations made earlier that he misappropriated almost $47,700 in cash from the residents.
Thirty-one-year-old Eric Lim Jin Rong, a Singaporean citizen, now faces one count of criminal breach of trust and another count of theft. He appeared in a district court on Jan 9 (Thursday) and his pre-trial conference was scheduled for Jan 16.
He had worked at the Hilltops condominium in Cairnhill Circle and is said to have misappropriated the funds residents handed over a period of seven months, between December 2023 and June 2024. According to a report in The Straits Times, the money was for purposes related to the condominium, which include management fees and security deposits.
In a separate case, on June 4, 2024, Lim is said to have stolen over $2 million worth of costly items from a unit at the condominium. Among these items is a designer watch from Patek Philippe valued at $1.8 million.
If found guilty of theft, Lim can be jailed for seven years and fined. If convicted of criminal breach of trust, he may be fined and jailed for as long as 15 years.
In Singapore, Section 405 of the Penal Code says that criminal breach of trust occurs when a person entrusted with property or funds dishonestly misappropriates them converts them for his own use, or dishonestly uses or disposes of them.
One of the worst cases of criminal breach of trust in Singapore involved Teo Cheng Kiat, who gained notoriety when it was discovered that he had embezzled $35 million from Singapore Airlines for 13 years when he was employed at the carrier between 1987 and 2000. Teo was slapped with 26 charges of criminal breach of trust and corruption and was convicted of ten charges, later receiving a 24-year jail sentence.
Another high-profile criminal breach of trust case involved the leadership of City Harvest Church. Its founder, Hong Kee, along with five other leaders, was found guilty of the offence in 2015 for misappropriating around S$50 million in church funds. /TISG
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