Woman hires sex workers and lives on their earnings of more than $264k

Facing financial difficulties, a woman started operating an online vice ring in 2017 and later lived on the earnings of six sex workers totalling more than $264,000.

The mastermind of the vice syndicate, Phua Shewn Ying, 43, also known as Pan Xuanying, had engaged Singaporean and Malaysian women to work for her. The sex workers provided services on up to 1,005 occasions in total.

Phua’s husband, Lim Teck Lee, 45, started helping her with the vice-related activities in 2022.

On 18 occasions between November 2022 and January 2023, Lim, who is also known as Lin Deli, transferred ill-gotten gains totalling more than $110,000 to a bank account, and helped his wife to live on the earnings of sex work.

On Jan 13, Phua pleaded guilty to five prostitution-related charges under the Women’s Charter while Lim pleaded guilty to two charges including one count of dealing with the benefits of criminal conduct.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Natalie Chu told the court that Phua had initially operated alone after setting up the online vice ring in 2017.

One of the women who worked for Phua was identified in court documents as T, a 29-year-old Singapore permanent resident.

Between 2016 and January 2018, T worked as an escort for a man known only as “James” to earn extra cash to support her university studies.

When he later became uncontactable, she went to a predominantly sex-themed online forum and contacted a number listed by one of its users as she wanted to continue working as an escort.

Phua contacted T soon after and advertised T’s services on the website.

DPP Chu said: “Initially, Phua charged T’s customers $650 per hour, but subsequently increased the price upon T’s request to $700 per hour.

“Out of the $700, T would keep $430, and the remaining $270 would go to Phua.”

T, who worked for Phua until December 2022, transferred $200,000 in total to the older woman.

In 2019, one of Lim’s friends introduced a Malaysian agent, known only as “Cynthia”, to Lim and Phua.

Cynthia then introduced women based in Malaysia to Phua, the court heard.

Phua shared around half of her earnings from these sex workers with Cynthia.

Phua would typically advertise the Singaporean women’s services for $550 to $750 per hour, and the Malaysian women’s services for $550 to $600 per hour.

DPP Chu said: “After receiving bookings from interested customers, Phua would then arrange for available social escorts to provide sexual services to them at an agreed location, date and time.”

Before working with Cynthia, Phua would meet the escorts to collect her share of their earnings in person.

While working with Cynthia, Phua would typically direct the escorts to transfer her share of their earnings into bank accounts which Cynthia had earlier provided.

Some time between 2020 and 2021, Phua asked Lim to help her obtain a bank account that the escorts could use to deposit her share of their earnings.

Lim agreed to help his wife. The DPP said Phua did not wish to use their own personal bank accounts to avoid detection.

Phua later had six sex workers working for her.

Court documents did not disclose how the offences came to light but the couple, who are Singaporeans, were arrested in January 2023.

On Jan 13, 2025, the prosecution urged the court to sentence Phua to up to 25 months’ jail and a fine of $170,000.

DPP Chu said: “We accept that (she had never secured a sex worker’s) continuance of her services through oppressive or cruel means.”

The DPP also asked that Lim be given up to 10 months’ jail and a fine of $30,000.

The couple will be sentenced on Jan 15.