SINGAPORE – Three firms were fined and four of its former directors were jailed on Thursday in the largest and most extensive case involving false declarations investigated by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) to date.

Due to the ruse that ran from 2009 to 2019, the three companies under property and logistics solutions company MES Group – Mini Environment Service, Labourtel Management Corporation and MES Logistics – could hire more foreign employees than they would otherwise have qualified for, said MOM in a statement.

As a result, the companies made significant profits over the years. For instance, Labourtel, the operator of four foreign worker dormitories, made $6,225,589 while MES Logistics, which provided transport services for materials and workers, made $4,099,397.

The ruse involved the submission of 111 false salary declarations linked to work permit and S Pass applications or renewals to MOM.

The affected workers then had to return the difference between their inflated declared monthly salaries and their actual earnings in cash.

The prosecution said the returned monies amounted to approximately $1,225,140 for Mini Environment Service, $508,200 for Labourtel and $78,000 for MES Logistics.

On Thursday, Mini Environment Service, which was in the business of providing drainage construction and cleaning services, was fined $396,500.

Labourtel was fined $120,000 while MES Logistics was ordered to pay a fine of $59,000.

Mohamed Jinna Mohamed Abdul Jaleel, 40, and Parvis Ahamed Mohamed Ghouse, 46, were directors at all three companies at the time of the offences.

Jinna was sentenced to 42 weeks’ jail and ordered to pay fine of $48,000, while Parvis was ordered to spend 35 weeks behind bars and pay a fine of $42,500.

Haja Nawaz, 54, who was a director at Labourtel, was given four months and two weeks’ jail.

The fourth offender, Chew Chain Loon, 59, used to be a director at MES Logistics and Mini Environment Service. He was sentenced to four months’ jail.

The three firms and four Singaporean men were convicted on Thursday over multiple offences under the Employment of Foreign Manpower Act and the Employment Act.