Singapore: Two Indians in Singapore were on Thursday sentenced to 10 weeks in prison for submitting forged academic certificates to secure jobs here.
The Indian men, aged 27 and 35, were jailed along with a 24-year-old Vietnamese, the Ministry of Manpower said.
Another accused, a 28-year-old Filipina, will have her case mentioned in court on April 27, it said.
According to Singapore laws, the accused could have been jailed for up to two years and fined over USD 14,000.
Investigations showed that the four foreigners had used forged certificates to fraudulently apply, obtain and renew their Employment Passes and S (Special) Passes, the Channel News Asia quoted the ministry as saying.
Using these passes, they held jobs such as restaurant manager, assistant manager, chef and facility executive, the ministry said.
It said 73 foreigners were convicted and permanently barred from working in Singapore in 2015 and 2016. "Using forged educational certificates to obtain work passes is a serious offence. We will prosecute the foreigners and permanently bar them from working in Singapore," said Kandhavel Periyasamy, director of Employment Inspectorate at the Ministry's Foreign Manpower Management Division.
Under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act, anyone submitting forged academic certificates may be fined up to 20,000 Singapore dollars (USD 14,274), and/or imprisoned for up to two years.
