2 years on, man is still trying to recover $5k bank transfer

A massage therapist who accidentally transferred $5,000 to a wrong account is embroiled in a 21-month struggle to get his money back.

Despite involving the police and the bank, the recipient – a logistics company director – refuses to return the funds, citing suspicions of fraud.

Mr Yu Sheng Jie, 46, recounted to Shin Min Daily News his ordeal which began in November 2022.

He had been tasked by a friend in China to transfer living expenses to his son studying in Singapore.

At an ATM in Sembawang, Mr Yu transferred $5,000, only to later realise he had selected the wrong recipient.

"My friend often asks me to transfer living expenses to his child," Mr Yu explained.

After discovering his error, he immediately contacted the bank and filed a police report the next day.

By December, the bank informed Mr Yu it was unable to retrieve the money as it couldn't reach the recipient.

Months later, with the police's help, Mr Yu discovered the recipient's account belonged to a logistics company and contacted its director, Mr Guo Fei, through WeChat.

"I don't know if I helped someone pay the logistics company before, so I had their account record, which led to the wrong selection and transfer," Mr Yu shared.

He presented Mr Guo with the police report and transfer records as proof of the mistaken transfer.

However, Mr Guo initially claimed he needed to investigate, then asserted he had transferred his business to someone else in September.

He further cast doubt on the legitimacy of the transfer, alleging it could be related to money laundering or fraud.

Frustrated, Mr Yu stated: "If he suspects the money is not clean, he should hand it over to the police for investigation. If there are issues and the police confiscate it, I have no objections. But he can't just keep holding on to my money."

The police confirmed they received Mr Yu's report and are currently investigating.

Shin Min Daily News reached out to Mr Guo for his side of the story.

The director maintained that the bank account details of Mr Yu's friend and his company were vastly different, making an accidental transfer highly improbable.

He believes there is more to the situation than meets the eye.

“It's impossible to transfer wrongly for no reason,” Mr Guo expressed.

He also pointed to conversations between Mr Yu and his friend mentioning shipping costs back to China, suggesting the $5,000 could be legitimate payment for logistics services.

"Before returning the money, I need to confirm whether the other party has any intention to defraud," Mr Guo stated.

When questioned about internal records that could verify the transactions, Mr Guo claimed his inability to access them due to transferring the company. He insisted the burden of proof rested on Mr Yu.

However, a check on Acra records by Shin Min Daily News revealed Mr Guo is the sole director and shareholder of the logistics company.

Adding another layer of anguish to his predicament, Mr Yu revealed his father's critical illness during his initial conversation with Mr Guo in June.

He pleaded for the return of the money to cover medical expenses, but Mr Guo remained unresponsive even after Mr Yu's father passed away the following month.

Commenting on the case, Senior Criminal Lawyer Mr Wang Liqing said the logistics company had no right to retain the money.

He advised that if the company suspected anything amiss, it should have immediately handed the funds over to the police.

Mr Wang highlighted that since a police report had been lodged, it suggested the transfer was likely a genuine mistake.

He pointed out that by holding onto the money, the company director could be liable for an offence under the Penal Code, particularly if it is proven the recipient was aware of the mistaken transfer.

Additionally, Mr Wang advised Mr Yu could pursue civil action to recover his $5,000.