A WOMAN who played on the fears of a boy's parents, that he would not make it to secondary school, has been jailed for running a bogus tutoring service.
Mr Sukhdev Singh, 44, and his wife were concerned about their son's failing grades at school and decided to engage a tutor to help him pass his upcoming Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE).
They chose the tutor after reading a flyer placed in a relative's letterbox and did not check her credentials before hiring her.
The tutor, Daisy Pious, 40, recommended an alleged Ministry of Education-approved programme to secure the 11-year-old a place in a secondary school.
She also claimed to be a registered tutor with the MOE although private tutors do not need to be registered with the ministry, said a spokesman.
Pious, whom her lawyer described as a tutor with 20 years' experience, told Mr Singh, a sales executive, that the programme would cost $14,200.
The sum would be refunded in stages upon completion of each syllabus of English, mathematics and science she taught, she said.
Mr Singh did not question why she offered almost a complete refund of the tuition fees as he trusted her.
When their son Melwindev's grades did not improve, Mr Singh asked for a refund of his money.
However, Pious made excuses and refused to meet him.
Sensing something was amiss, Mr Singh made a police report.
Yesterday, Pious was jailed for two months in a district court for cheating Mr Singh with a fake educational programme.
She could have been jailed up to a year and fined.
Her lawyer said she had already returned $1,000 to Mr Singh and planned to return the rest in monthly instalments.
Pious was granted a deferment in sentencing until Jan 19, to be with her daughter, who is expecting her O-level results.
She also cheated another student's parents of $950, using the same ruse. This was taken into consideration in her sentencing.
The court heard that Melwindev, now 12, was then a Primary 5 student in Jurong Primary School.
He began classes with Pious at her flat in Jurong West in September 2006.
She assured his parents that their son would be able to pass his PSLE and secure a place in a secondary school.
She also claimed that a 'written agreement' would also be issued by MOE once she had completed tutoring him.
However, no satisfactory information could be gained as to what this 'written agreement' was.
Mr Singh transferred money to Pious' bank account on five occasions from November 2006 to June last year.
The money was from Mrs Singh's gratuity payout when she worked for the Defence Ministry.
Speaking to The Straits Times yesterday, Mr Singh said he made a police report after his wife met the parents of another student whom Pious tutored and discovered that the tutor was pulling a similar scam on them.
When he asked Melwindev what happened during his tuition classes, his son told him he was just made to write English compositions.
'She would just make me do compositions and she would leave the room,' said Melwindev.
'She would ask her 14-year-old daughter to watch me in the room.
'Other times, I would just play games and go home afterwards.'
The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) said it has received 19 complaints against tuition centres, tutors and educational agencies this year for reasons such as providing unsatisfactory services and making misleading claims.
Case said that when parents hire a tutor, they should engage those from private schools registered with MOE and all verbal promises should be put into writing.
Melwindev went to another tutor who helped him pass his PSLE last year.
He finished Secondary 1 at Jurongville Secondary School this year.
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