M'sian charged with exporting stolen vehicles

For six years, Malaysian Nyo Ah Hai, 50, allegedly shipped stolen Malaysian-registered cars overseas from Singapore.

On May 16, he was charged with 16 counts of allegedly trying to dispose of stolen cars.

His alleged offences occurred between May 2008 and the middle of this month.

Together with a few accomplices, Nyo, 50, was said to be engaged in a conspiracy to dishonestly dispose of the vehicles by exporting them from Singapore.

In addition, Nyo was charged with possessing a fake passport on May 14 at Terminal 2 of Changi Airport.

Of the 16 stolen cars, 13 were Toyota multi-purpose vehicles, sports utility vehicles (SUV) and trucks.

They were popular models including Fortuners, Vellfires and Hiluxes. The others were two Honda Civics and a Chevrolet.

While the total value of the stolen cars was unknown, two SUVs allegedly acquired by Nyo and his accomplices were estimated at $41,000 each.

Most of the crimes had allegedly occurred at 7 Penjuru Close in the western part of Singapore.

REMAND EXTENDED

Nyo, who had been in police custody since May 16, appeared in court again last Friday.

The police prosecutor asked the judge to extend Nyo's remand in order to assist police officers from Ang Mo Kio police division in their investigations.

The judge granted the request and adjourned Nyo's hearing by another five days.

If convicted of disposing of stolen property, he can be jailed up to five years, fined or both. For possession of the forged passport, Nyo can be jailed up to 10 years and fined.