Vincent Lee Chuan Leong

Born in Singapore in 1966, Lee was an academically inclined student who used to study at the Presbyterian Boys' School before he went on to further his studies in university, and he earned a double degree in mathematics and finance.

Upon his graduation, Lee worked as a marketing manager.

Lee was a Christian and according to the pastor of the church Lee frequented to, he was known for his good character and participation to counsel troubled youth when they approached him for advice and help, and he even offered them free tuition.

The other was 29-year-old Shi Song Jing (施松进 Shī Sōngjìn), who came to Singapore from China in February 1997 due to him being duped about various well-paid jobs in Singapore.

Shi was abandoned by his agent and he had to stay all alone in Singapore as an illegal immigrant for six months before getting a job as a plasterer.

Both Zhou and Shi agreed to assist Lee in executing the kidnap plot.

Lee made a plan to abduct a target at Bukit Timah, starting with renting a van for the purpose of forcibly bringing their target into the van, and also rented a flat to use as their hideout and their place to confine the kidnap victim during the kidnapping.

They also placed false license plates with false vehicle numbers on the van to avoid identification of their getaway vehicle.

Vincent Lee Chuan Leong (李泉梁 Lǐ Quánliáng) is a Singaporean ex-convict who, together with two illegal immigrants from China, kidnapped a 14-year-old female student in 1999.

The trio abducted the teenager into their rented car, and then demanded S$500,000 ransom from the girl's father, a wealthy second-hand car dealer.

Eventually, through negotiations, the ransom was lowered to S$330,000, and upon the agreement to the amount, the ransom was paid and the girl was subsequently released without harm.

Shortly after releasing the girl, Lee was arrested by the Singapore Police Force for kidnapping the teenager for ransom, and his two accomplices Shi Song Jing and Zhou Jian Guang, were also caught.

Lee was found guilty of kidnapping by ransom and sentenced to life imprisonment.

Both Shi and Zhou received the same sentence for the crime in a separate trial.

Many people from the church were reportedly shocked to hear that he was caught for masterminding the high-profile kidnapping of a girl in 1999.

By August 1999, however, Lee was facing heavy financial trouble and potential bankruptcy from share trading, and to make matters worse, his wife, who was in the late stage of pregnancy at that time, required medical attention and the expensive medical fees also caused additional financial burden on Lee, who was desperate to discharge his debts and his wife's upcoming medical fees.

The couple's first child, a son, was born in October or November 1999.

Due to his desperation to pay off his debts, Lee decided to kidnap a girl for ransom, specifically a teenage girl who was the daughter of a rich family living in one of the affluent neighbourhoods in Bukit Timah.

For his plan, Lee hired two illegal Chinese immigrants he met at a coffee shop near Hougang Plaza.

One of the foreigners was 26-year-old Zhou Jian Guang (周建光 Zhōu Jiànguāng), a China-born native of Fujian Province, who was married with a five-year-old son, and he first came to Singapore to work as a construction worker in order to build a house for his parents, wife and son.

Since July 1999, he lost his job but continued to stay in Singapore.

On the night of 9 September 1999, 14-year-old Sandi Yong Sze Hui (杨思慧 Yáng Sīhuì), a Secondary Two student of Monk's Hill Secondary School, was walking back home, wanting to celebrate her father's birthday, which fell on the same day she was kidnapped.

Yong's father Yong Cher Keng (杨慈庆 Yáng Cíqìng) was a wealthy second-hand car dealer who resided at Sian Tuan Avenue in Bukit Timah.

While on her way home, Yong was targeted by Lee and his accomplices, who abducted her and kept her inside her van.

Subsequently, Yong was blindfolded and kept inside a bedroom, with her hands tied and her mouth covered with adhesive tape.

During the time of her confinement, Yong was treated well and kindly by the trio, and she was not hurt.

After kidnapping Yong, Lee phoned Yong's father, asking for a ransom of S$500,000 in exchange for his daughter, threatening to harm the girl if he did not pay up.

Yong's father reported the matter to the police, who helped monitor the situation while staying at the family's side to get updates about the case.

A police operation was also set up with manpower invested full-time to search for Yong and identify the kidnappers.

Yong's father and Lee later had two more phone conversations, and during each of the phone calls, Lee allowed Yong to talk to her father, and get updates that she was still safe and alright.

Eventually, after some negotiations, it was agreed that Yong's father would pay a ransom of S$330,000 and upon payment, Lee would release the girl.

Yong's father, together with police officers, went to the agreed location in Tampines during night time, where Yong's father would drop off a black bag containing the money, and Shi would collect the bag once Yong's father was out of sight.

By then, the police had identified the kidnappers through Lee's credit card, which Lee used to purchase a prepaid phone card for contacting Yong's father.

After receiving the ransom money, on the morning of 12 September 1999, about 60 hours after her abduction, 14-year-old Sandi Yong was released by Zhou on Lee's orders, and she safely returned home after hailing a taxi.

Twenty minutes after the confirmation of the girl's release and safety, a team of police investigators, led by Inspector Richard Lim Beng Gee, arrested 33-year-old Vincent Lee at his Pasir Ris five-room flat for the kidnapping of Yong.

Both Zhou and Shi were subsequently arrested at a flat in Telok Blangah Crescent.

All three of them were charged with kidnapping for purpose of extorting a ransom.

It was further revealed that Zhou and Shi entrusted the ransom money to five other illegal Chinese immigrants to help them to remit the ransom money out of Singapore.

These five people were also arrested, charged and later jailed for dishonestly receiving stolen property; S$214,400 were recovered by the police.

After serving twenty years, ten months and nine days in jail, Lee was granted parole and is currently released from prison since 22 June 2020.