Six Malaysian men were sentenced in Singapore on September 14 over an armed robbery that netted approximately S$4.9 million in cryptocurrency, cash and luxury goods from a high-stakes poker game held at a private residence in Bukit Timah, according to a Channel NewsAsia report.

Two ringleaders, Wong Chi Shan and Goh Boon Tong, each received 12 years and 11 months in prison, 24 strokes of the cane — the maximum number of strokes permitted in a single case under Singapore law — and a S$4,000 fine. All six men had pleaded guilty to charges including armed gang robbery and removing criminal proceeds from Singapore.

Poker Games Settled in Crypto Targeted

Wong and Goh learned in 2023 that high-stakes poker games were regularly held at a Good Class Bungalow in King Albert Park — Singapore's most exclusive category of landed housing — where wagers reached hundreds of thousands of Singapore dollars and payments were frequently settled in cryptocurrency. They later surveyed the property and discovered that its gate and main door were left unlocked while games were underway.

After deciding to rob the house, the pair recruited additional men through Mohd Hamidon Ahmed, who operated a private security and debt-collection business.

Seven masked men entered the residence shortly after 2 a.m. on April 18, 2024, with three carrying machetes and two armed with baseball bats. The victims were restrained with tape while Wong and Goh searched their phones for cryptocurrency applications and transferred assets into a wallet controlled by the group. Unlike a bank transfer, which can be frozen or reversed, a cryptocurrency payment takes effect within seconds and cannot be undone once it is recorded on-chain — whatever moved during the raid was immediately under the group's control.

The robbers stole about S$3.6 million in crypto alongside local and foreign currency, a Patek Philippe watch, Rolex watches, a Richard Mille watch and other property. The total value presented in court reached S$4,905,981.

The case mirrors a wider pattern of physical coercion aimed at cryptocurrency holders, including a reported $24 million violent crypto robbery and a separate $6.5 million robbery spree involving crypto investors.

1.1 Million USDT Moved After Escape

The group fled Singapore shortly after the robbery, splitting between the Tuas and Woodlands checkpoints before regrouping in Kuala Lumpur. Wong transferred approximately 1.1 million USDT — a stablecoin designed to hold its peg to the US dollar — to Goh as his share of the stolen cryptocurrency. The pair later found buyers for part of the crypto and received RM1.49 million in cash, which was used in part to pay the recruited robbery team.

Singapore police eventually recovered about S$1.69 million of the stolen assets, while roughly S$3.21 million remains unrecovered. Goh assisted authorities in recovering about 800,000 USDT from the 1.1 million USDT he had received. Unlike cash, tokens such as USDT leave a permanent record on public blockchains, giving investigators an auditable trail of wallet addresses and transfer amounts.

The Singapore Police Force began making arrests within days of the robbery, working with the Royal Malaysia Police after investigators established that the group had crossed into Malaysia shortly after leaving the property.

Ringleaders Receive Longest Sentences

Hamidon was sentenced to 10 years and six months in prison and 24 strokes of the cane. Kartik Palaniappan and Muhammad Tauffiq Ahmad Fauzi each received seven years and eight months with 24 strokes.

Mohd Hashim Ismail, 51, received eight years and eight months in prison and was not caned because of his age, as Singaporean law generally bars caning for offenders above 50.

Justice Aidan Xu described the robbery as an "audacious and well-planned" operation and said the sentences had to reflect the disruption caused by an armed group entering a private home and restraining its occupants.\nA seventh Malaysian suspect, Muhammad Yusuf Kassim, remains at large and is believed to have left Malaysia for Thailand.