Some suspects in billion-dollar money-laundering case hire lawyers, including Lee & Lee

SEVERAL of the foreigners arrested last Tuesday in Singapore’s biggest anti-money laundering operation have engaged lawyers, with one of them being represented by established law firm Lee & Lee.

The judiciary website says the 40-year-old Su Haijin is being represented by Lee & Lee’s co-head of its litigation and dispute resolution department, Julian Tay. The Cypriot national has been charged with one count of avoiding lawful apprehension when the police closed in on him at a Good-Class Bungalow in Ewart Park.

Chen Qingyuan has hired Denise Teo, a director with Yuen Law, to defend him. The 33-year-old Cambodian has been accused of money laundering. When he was charged, he had said at the time that he was aware of his right to ask for bail. However, he and nine other suspects have been remanded.

Vanuatu national Su Jianfeng, 35, who also faces a money-laundering charge, has hired Ravindran Ramasamy of CNPLaw, a veteran with over three decades of legal experience.

Vang Shuiming was the only one among the 10 accused to have a lawyer in court last Wednesday, when he was charged with using a forged document as supporting documentation to Citibank Singapore. Vang, also known as Wang Shuiming, is represented by Terence Seah, a partner at Virtus Law.

It is unclear whether the other six accused rounded up in last week’s blitz have also engaged counsel.

Their cases will be mentioned on Wednesday (Aug 23).