Teen conspired with ‘John Wick’ to launder money for Malaysian syndicate

Published Oct 14, 2026, 05:43 PM

Updated Oct 14, 2026, 05:43 PM

A 19-year-old Singapore teen helped a Malaysian syndicate launder money after taking orders from a Telegram user called “John Wick”.

He and a friend withdrew $19,000 from six ATMs and passed it to an unknown “money changer” for cash commissions.

He was also involved in a Tampines fight over a girl, and the court sentenced him to reformative training for at least a year.

SINGAPORE – A teen who helped launder money for a Malaysian syndicate on the instructions of a person with the nickname “John Wick” has been sentenced to reformative training for at least a year.

The 19-year-old cannot be named as he had committed some of the offences before he turned 18.

On Oct 14, he pleaded guilty to three charges – conspiring to access a computer to commit theft, transferring benefits from crime, and being in the company of a person with a karambit knife.

Six similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.

On April 3, 2025, the teen met with a friend who told him about a “John Wick” on Telegram.

Unlike the John Wick played by Hollywood actor Keanu Reeves in a series of movies about the titular fictional assassin, this one was looking for runners to help a Malaysian syndicate launder money.

The runners were to withdraw cash from automated teller machines (ATMs) in Singapore using compromised account credentials .

“John Wick” promised commissions of up to $2,000 for every $100,000 withdrawn.

The teen and his friend withdrew a total of $19,000 from six ATMs located in Bedok North Street, New Bridge Road and People’s Park Complex on April 3 and 4, 2025.

Acting on the instructions of an unknown Malaysian operative, they later handed the cash to an unknown person they referred to as the “money changer”.

“John Wick” then paid the friend $750, of which $250 was handed to the teen.

Separately, on Aug 19, 2025, the teen and the same friend were among a group of youth who confronted another group at a Tampines carpark in a dispute over a girl.

Holding a karambit knife, the friend made a youth from the other group kneel and apologise while pulling his ears, and also punched the victim on the shoulder.

When the groups subsequently left the carpark, the knife was discarded in the vicinity.

The police were later called about a case of fighting and arrested the teen and his friends and seized the knife.

Court documents also said the teen was found with a knuckleduster and arrested on another occasion in June 2024 .

Highlighting the seriousness of his offences, the prosecution told the court probation was unsuitable for the teen, as he had been arrested at least three times from June 2024 to January 2026.

The teen is currently out on bail and is expected to begin serving his sentence on Oct 26.

For helping the syndicate launder money from crime, he could have been jailed for up to 10 years and fined $500,000.

David Sun is The Straits Times’ crime correspondent. He has a background in criminology and is a licensed private investigator.

发布于 2026 年 10 月 14 日下午 5:43

更新于2026年10月14日下午5:43

一名19岁的新加坡少年在接受名为“John Wick”的Telegram用户的指示后，帮助一个马来西亚犯罪集团洗钱。

他和一位朋友从六台自动取款机取出 19,000 美元，然后交给一位不知名的“货币兑换商”以换取现金佣金。

他还曾因争夺一名女子在淡滨尼参与斗殴，法庭判处他至少一年的改造训练。

新加坡——一名青少年在绰号为“约翰·威克”的人的指示下，帮助马来西亚犯罪集团洗钱，被判处至少一年的改造训练。

由于这名19岁的男子在18岁之前犯下了一些罪行，因此不能透露他的姓名。

10 月 14 日，他承认了三项指控——共谋入侵计算机实施盗窃、转移犯罪所得以及与持有卡拉姆刀的人在一起。

量刑时考虑了六项类似的指控。

2025年4月3日，这名少年与一位朋友见面，朋友告诉他Telegram上有一部名为“John Wick”的电影。

与好莱坞演员基努·里维斯在一系列以虚构杀手约翰·威克为主角的电影中扮演的约翰·威克不同，这个约翰·威克正在寻找跑腿人员，帮助一个马来西亚犯罪集团洗钱。

这些跑腿人员计划使用被盗用的账户凭证在新加坡的自动取款机（ATM）上提取现金。

《疾速追杀》承诺，每提取 10 万美元，即可获得高达 2000 美元的佣金。

2025年4月3日和4日，这名青少年和他的朋友在勿洛北街、新桥路和珍珠坊的六台自动取款机上共取走了19000美元。

他们按照一名身份不明的马来西亚特工的指示，将现金交给了一名他们称之为“换钱人”的陌生人。

“约翰·威克”随后支付了这位朋友 750 美元，其中 250 美元交给了这位少年。

另外，2025 年 8 月 19 日，这名少年和他的朋友与一群年轻人在淡滨尼停车场因一名女孩的纠纷与另一群年轻人发生冲突。

朋友手持卡拉姆刀，揪着对方一名青年的耳朵，逼他跪下道歉，还打了受害者的肩膀。

随后，当这群人离开停车场时，那把刀被丢弃在了附近。

警方随后接到报警称发生斗殴事件，逮捕了这名少年及其朋友，并缴获了刀具。

法庭文件还显示，这名青少年在 2024 年 6 月的另一次事件中被发现持有指节铜套并被逮捕。

检方强调其罪行的严重性，并告诉法庭，缓刑不适合这名青少年，因为他从 2024 年 6 月到 2026 年 1 月至少被捕过三次。

这名青少年目前已获保释，预计将于10月26日开始服刑。

他因帮助犯罪集团洗钱，最高可被判处 10 年监禁和 50 万美元罚款。

大卫·孙是《海峡时报》的犯罪记者。他拥有犯罪学背景，并且是一名持证私人侦探。