SPF: Tradeluxury director charged over money laundering as Thailand seizes properties linked to luxury goods scam
SINGAPORE: A 30-year-old Singaporean woman, Yap Lee Peng Somchai, was charged in court on August 21, 2026, for her role in the Tradenation and Tradeluxury luxury goods scam, which was a case that generated 187 police reports from victims who paid in full for luxury watches and bags that were never delivered.
Somchai, who served as director of Tradeluxury and authorised signatory of its bank account, faces one count of transferring property with reasonable grounds to believe it represented criminal proceeds under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act 1992, and one count of failing to exercise reasonable diligence in her duties as a company director under the Companies Act 1967.
Two other individuals who were connected to the scheme have already been convicted. Pansuk Siriwipa, the main decision-maker for both Tradenation and Tradeluxury responsible for sourcing suppliers and arranging deliveries, was sentenced in October 2024 to 14 years’ imprisonment for offences under multiple Acts, with 150 further offences taken into consideration for sentencing.
Pi Jiapeng, director of both companies, was sentenced in October 2025 to five years and ten months’ imprisonment for offences under the Companies Act, CDSA, and the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act, with four additional offences taken into consideration.
Asset recovery progress in Thailand
The Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) has been working with Thai authorities on potential asset recovery. Several properties in Thailand were provisionally seized by Thailand’s Anti-Money Laundering Office in June 2026 through extensive collaboration between CAD and Thai authorities.
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CAD is now facilitating the consolidation of victims’ claims for the potential recovery of these properties, subject to Thailand’s laws and legal processes. Victims who previously lodged police reports in relation to the case have been contacted by CAD directly.