SINGAPORE: A Singaporean car driver who staged traffic accidents to squeeze cash from unsuspecting motorists has been sentenced to 32 weeks in jail, ending a scheme that lasted more than four years.

Danial Ali Liaqat Ali, 28, was linked to at least 73 traffic incidents between September 2019 and January 2024. Most of the crashes were deliberately engineered, so he could demand on-the-spot cash settlements from other drivers.

On June 5, a Singapore court sentenced him to 32 weeks’ imprisonment and fined him S$6,000. He will also be barred from driving for 48 months after completing his jail term, The Star Online reported.

Road scam that uses motorists’ confusion to extract cash

The case stands out in the incidents involved and exposed a form of road scam that uses confusion, pressure, and motorists who prefer to avoid lengthy disputes.

Court documents showed that Danial actively sought opportunities to cause near-collisions or minor crashes. He would drive dangerously close to other vehicles, fail to brake in time or accelerate into situations likely to result in contact between vehicles.

After the incident, he would approach the other driver and claim compensation was needed for damage. He typically demanded private cash settlements ranging from S$180 to S$1,500. The total amount he collected wasn’t disclosed in court.

One incident took place on July 19, 2023, near the junction of Cantonment Road and Keppel Road. Court records showed Danial manoeuvred his vehicle in a way that created the appearance of a collision. Although no impact occurred, he later stopped the other motorist and claimed damage had been caused to his car. The driver paid him S$180.

The following day, he used a similar tactic on another motorist along Sims Avenue and extracted S$300.

In another case on Nov 5, 2023, along Geylang Road, Danial positioned his vehicle during a lane change and came into contact with another car’s side mirror. He then blamed the other motorist and obtained S$300.

Beyond the staged incidents, prosecutors said he failed to report 29 traffic accidents to the authorities between March 2023 and January 2024.

Fraud extended beyond the road

His troublemaker activities didn’t end just on the roads. Deputy Public Prosecutor Hidayat Amir told the court that while working as an assistant outlet manager at bakery-cafe chain Cedele, Danial created a membership account using his own details. He then entered his personal contact number into customer transactions to collect loyalty points.

Within days in October 2025, he accumulated enough points to redeem a S$100 voucher. He was also accused of pocketing S$100 cash from a customer later that month.

Road accidents should be handled through proper reporting channels, not private roadside settlements

During sentencing, prosecutors argued that Danial’s actions created serious risks for motorists and passengers. By deliberately engineering collisions and near-collisions, he exposed multiple road users to potential harm.

The case shows that even minor traffic incidents should be handled through proper reporting channels rather than private roadside settlements. A fast cash payment may seem like the easiest solution in the moment, but official reporting remains the best protection for everyone involved.

This article (Singaporean car driver linked to 73 traffic ‘accidents’ that were mostly staged gets 32 weeks jail and S$6K fine) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.

SINGAPORE: A local man who also has Indonesian citizenship was given the maximum jail sentence of three years for defaulting on National Service (NS) for 21 years and nine months. He was also fined S$3,000.

The judge in his case, James Elisha Lee, said that Zao’s behaviour falls under the worst category of NS defaulters. Edmond Yao Zhi Hai’s lawyers filed an appeal against the conviction after he was sentenced on Tuesday (May 26).

Yao, now 47, was supposed to report for enlistment into full-time NS in January 1997, but failed to do so. In his sentencing, Justice Lee noted how the Defence Ministry’s Defence Central Manpower Base (CMPB) had repeatedly informed Yao and his parents of his obligation to serve the NS requirement, but this was “blatantly” ignored over the years.

According to Zao, he was following Indonesian law, which does not allow its citizens to serve in the armed forces of another country.

However, the judge said that Zao’s “failure to contact CMPB to resolve his NS liabilities can only be attributable to an outright refusal to acknowledge his NS obligations.”

Zao’s backstory

Zao was born in 1978 to a Singaporean woman married to an Indonesian man. While his father registered him as an Indonesian and obtained an Indonesian passport for him, a deed poll stating that Yao was a minor and a citizen of Singapore was made by his mother when Yao was 8 years old.

He was educated at Catholic High School, Raffles Institution, and Raffles Junior College, and received a national registration identity card (NRIC) in 1990.

Yao received a notice from CMPB in January 1996 informing him he needed to register for NS. In 1997, his father wrote to CMPB, asking for a deferment until Yao was 21 on the basis of his being an Indonesian citizen. This request was denied, as CMPB pointed out that Yao is a citizen of Singapore and therefore must fulfil the NS requirement.

From 1997 to 2001, Yao studied overseas. In 2003, he wrote to the embassy of Singapore in Indonesia to renounce his Singapore citizenship. According to CPMB, it did not support this renunciation.

He married a Singaporean woman in 2005 and applied for permanent residence. Since he was in effect a Singaporean citizen, this application was rejected.

Yao later travelled in and out of Singapore using his Indonesian passport, which bore the name “Edmond Jauw Ming Siang.” In 2021, he was arrested for defaulting on his NS requirement and was later fined S$3,000 for immigration offences. /TISG

Read also: Rare National Service evasion case: Prosecutors push for maximum jail term for Singaporean over dual citizenship dispute

This article (3-year jail sentence given to man who evaded National Service for over 20 years) first appeared on The Independent Singapore News.