The husband, Mr Pi Jiapeng, apparently came from a very humble background but always wished for a lavish lifestyle.
His wish came true in the form of Ms Pansuk Siriwipa, a Thai national whom he met in December 2019 and subsequently married.
Here’s how the secondary school dropout became part of the couple that scammed others of $32 million.
If you’ve no idea who he is, watch this to the end:
Humble Background, Big Dreams
A friend of Mr Pi’s who met him in Secondary One described the man as one who is “full of himself”.
Recalling their secondary school days, his friend told The Straits Times that Mr Pi “was just an ordinary teenager like all of us. But in his heart, he always had this dream to lead a lavish lifestyle.”
After Mr Pi dropped out of school in Secondary Three, he worked odd jobs and allegedly developed a gambling habit, which landed him in debt. He also worked as a retail assistant in a sports shoe store, and a car salesman.
As the only child, Mr Pi lived with his single mother in a Yishun three-room flat till December 2019. This was when he met Ms Pansuk on the dating app Tinder.
Made His Dreams Come True
A week into their first meeting, Ms Pansuk bought Mr Pi Balenciaga shoes, and even helped him pay off his debts of $5,000. His friend recalled how Ms Pansuk bought him whatever luxury goods he wanted, and brought him along on holidays often in London and Japan.
It seems like Mr Pi’s dream of living a life of luxury came true with Ms Pansuk, where they ate at expensive restaurants as often as how we eat at hawker centres.
The couple then got married in September 2020, but didn’t have a big wedding reception as one would expect. The couple, together with Mr Pi’s mother, then moved to a condominium in Bukit Timah, before moving again to a landed property near Holland Grove in October 2021.
Invite Friends Over to Brag and Talk about Money
According to another friend of Mr Pi, he would invite his friends to the Bukit Timah condominium quite often.
There, he would proudly show off their “luxury room”, which was full of shelves of luxury handbags and Rolex watches kept in expensive watch winders. Mr Pi would also often talk to his friends about gambling and making money.
On the other hand, the friend described Ms Pansuk as a humble and welcoming person when they first met.
Argued over Serial Number
A friend bought a Rolex GMT-Master II Pepsi from Mr Pi in March 2022 for $35,000.
On that day, the friend sold it on Carousell. However, the watch’s serial number, which is used to identify the watch, could be clearly seen in the photos.
This led to the two arguing, as Mr Pi said the retailers he got the watch from would stop selling watches to him. This was presumably because the retailers identified the watch from the serial number and realised that Mr Pi is a reseller.
Nevertheless, Mr Pi’s friends are all shocked to hear that he and his wife have fled Singapore.
“I don’t know what will happen next. I guess we’re all on the edge of our seats to find out.”
Featured Image: Shin Min Daily News