A 28-year-old clinic assistant has been sentenced to one year and two months in jail after she cheated 509 patients of more than $55,000 by using fake QR codes and her own phone number to collect payments meant for the clinic.
According to Zaobao, the woman, Amira Nur Hudah Mohamed, worked at a clinic along Marine Parade Central.
Between January and June 2023, she secretly changed the clinic’s official PayNow QR code and provided her personal phone number for payments. The money ended up in her own bank account, which she had renamed under the clinic owner’s name to avoid suspicion.
She would also issue official clinic receipts after collecting the money, so patients did not realise anything was wrong.
Later, she printed fake QR codes that linked to her bank account, pasted them over the real ones on the counter during her shifts, and swapped them back before she knocked off.
Over 400 patients ended up scanning the fake codes and unknowingly paid her instead of the clinic.
It all came to light on 21 June 2023, when a patient sent a screenshot of the payment to the clinic’s doctor. The doctor noticed that the payment was made to a bank account linked to a mobile number that was not his. He then reviewed the clinic’s CCTV footage, and a police report was filed.
Investigations revealed Amira had pocketed $55,437.12 over six months. She has only returned $3,000 so far and admitted to spending the stolen money on illegal online gambling.
The prosecution called it a premeditated crime done purely for personal gain and asked for a sentence of at least 14 months. Her lawyer pleaded for leniency, saying she had cooperated fully and pleaded guilty early.
Eventually, the court sentenced her to one year and two months behind bars.
Those convicted of cheating can be jailed for up to 10 years and are liable to a fine.
