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By Elena Chong
A conman who duped a number of China nationals into believing that he could get work permits for them in Australia in return for a fee was jailed for 6 1/2 years on Wednesday.
Toh Boon Cheng, 33, admitted to scheming with Lee Kim Hoong, 46, to cheat the victims earlier this year.
The court heard that Toh set up New Plan Enterprises at Bukit Timah Shopping Centre in September 2005 to supply workers to companies in Australia.
But when his business faced financial difficulties in mid-2006, he decided to cheat his customers.
The China nationals and other foreign workers were charged a fee of around $1,500 to process the work permits.
Toh and his alleged accomplice, whose case is pending, spent the money to cover their personal and company expenses.
Between February 2006 and March this year, he cheated the victims of a total of $543,600. Only $41,150 had been recovered.
He could have been jailed for up to seven years on each of the 15 charges he admitted to.
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