HE decided to cash in on a traffic accident - and ended up in jail.

Car sales executive Yeo See Poh, 51, told a customer that he had lost the customer's money after a motorcycle accident.

However, it was later revealed that the money was 'lost' not on the road, but at the racetrack.

When confronted with evidence that the money was transferred to his Singapore Turf Club betting account, Yeo claimed the money was from a mysterious 'prominent horse owner'.

For misappropriating his customer's money, he was jailed 20 months in September for criminal breach of trust.

The court heard that Yeo had received a cheque for $29,745 from Mr Chia Wah Siang, who wanted to buy a second-hand Toyota car.

Yeo encashed it, taking $10,000 in cash and transferring the rest to his POSB account.

The fund transfers were done at 2.29pm on 15Jun last year, more than three hours after Yeo had the motorcycle accident. Doctors at Changi General Hospital said Yeo was treated before noon and discharged on crutches.

About 11/2 months later, when the car had to be registered, Mr Chia still had not received some documents.

He called Yeo, who said he would hand over the documents the next day.

When Yeo did not show up and could not be contacted, Mr Chia made a police report.

'Pocket torn'

During the trial, Yeo said he had a traffic accident after encashing Mr Chia's cheque. He said he had put the money into a pocket without realising that it was torn.

But Assistant Public Prosecutor Puvaneswari Sandirasekaran pointed out that Mr Chia's cheque was encashed at DBS Bank, with Yeo getting $10,000 and the rest transferred to his POSB account.

When shown evidence that his accident happened before he encashed the cheque, Yeo changed his tune and agreed with the prosecution.

Evidence also showed that $10,000 of the remaining $19,745 was transferred to his Turf Club account.

Under cross-examination, Yeo mentioned the 'prominent horse owner'. He claimed that third parties had used his betting account, but declined to identify them despite being advised that this could suggest guilt.

Finding Yeo guilty, District Judge Toh Yung Cheong said he did not believe his story.

He wrote in his judgment: 'The irresistible inference was that Yeo was planning to use this cash for his own purposes.'

He also noted that if Yeo had really lost the money, he failed to inform his employer and MrChia.

As for Yeo changing his story about the accident, District Judge Toh wrote: 'The reason is simple - the prosecution cornered Yeo by producing evidence that showed the accident occurred before he encashed the cheque. This forced Yeo to change his story in court.'

Yeo, who has committed three similar offences of pocketing other people's money, could have been jailed up to three years and fined.

This article was first published in The New Paper on Nov 8, 2008.