Chinese hacker Wang Yunhe’s arrest brings fresh scrutiny of Singapore wealth flows

He held a bank account in the city state, was a director of several local companies and lived in a multimillion-dollar apartment overlooking a premier shopping district, according to an indictment and local filings. All the while, the 35-year-old Chinese national was amassing riches by offering cybercriminals access to millions of infected devices for a fee, the US Justice Department said.

The revelations are a reminder of the difficult balancing act faced by Singapore and other financial hubs as they push to attract the world’s ultra rich. That drive has helped turn Singapore into a premier wealth management centre, yet it has also been accompanied by a string of scandals in recent years – along with vows from authorities to step up oversight.

Wang was arrested in Singapore at his home on May 24. He is charged among other things with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering, according to the DOJ. If convicted on all counts, Wang faces a maximum penalty of 65 years in prison.

The charges against Wang are for allegedly deploying malware, and creating and operating a residential proxy service known as “911 S5”, a botnet that facilitated cyberattacks, large-scale fraud, child exploitation, harassment, bomb threats, and export violations, according to the DOJ.

The Singapore police and attorney general’s chambers have been working with the DOJ and Federal Bureau of Investigation since August 2022, according to a statement from the city state’s police. The police launched an operation to arrest Wang, following an extradition request from the US. The multi-agency effort also included law enforcement in Thailand and Germany, according to the DOJ.

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