A 58-year-old Singaporean man has been sentenced to two months and two weeks in jail after secretly marrying another woman overseas while still legally married to his first wife.
The case only came to light after his second partner reported the matter to authorities following the breakdown of their long-term relationship. The man, identified in court documents as Ong Hiap Leong, was eventually arrested after investigations confirmed that the overseas marriage constituted bigamy under Singapore law.
Authorities said the case highlights how overseas marriages can still fall under local legal scrutiny if they breach Singapore’s marital laws.
Second Marriage Registered In Las Vegas
According to court records, Ong had been married to his first wife, Lim Li Ying, since 1992. The couple have two children together and had maintained their marriage for decades.
Ong later met another woman, Loh Wai Han, sometime around 2003. The pair eventually developed a romantic relationship, and Loh was aware that Ong was already married.
Because Ong’s existing marriage had not been dissolved, the couple were unable to legally marry in Singapore. Instead, they travelled to Las Vegas in the U.S. state of Nevada, where they registered a civil marriage on March 31, 2017.
After the ceremony, both returned to Singapore and continued their relationship privately. Ong maintained his family life with his first wife while still seeing Loh over the years.
Relationship Breakdown Leads To Police Report
The relationship between Ong and Loh lasted more than eight years but eventually became strained.
On June 9, 2025, Loh lodged a police report accusing Ong of bigamy, prompting an investigation by the Singapore Police Force.
Investigators later confirmed that Ong had indeed entered into a second marriage overseas while still legally married to Lim, making the union invalid under Singapore law.
Despite being married to Loh since 2017, Ong did not inform his first wife about the situation until August 2025, nearly three months after police investigations had already begun. The disclosure came just two days before authorities were scheduled to interview her.
By that time, the second marriage had lasted almost eight and a half years.
Marriage Later Declared Void By U.S. Court
Following the start of investigations, Ong attempted to annul the second marriage.
On October 9, 2025, the District Court of Clark County in Nevada declared the marriage between Ong and Loh null and void.
Under Singapore law, the marriage would have been considered invalid regardless, as bigamy occurs when someone marries another person while their existing spouse is still alive and the marriage has not been legally dissolved.
Ong was arrested by the Singapore Police Force on October 22, 2025. He was later released on agency bail on the same day.
Court Considers Family Forgiveness During Sentencing
Prosecutors initially sought a jail term ranging between three and four months for the offence.
However, the court was informed that Ong’s first wife and their two children had submitted statutory declarations stating that they had forgiven him.
While forgiveness is not formally considered a mitigating factor in criminal sentencing, prosecutors noted that it suggested a lower level of harm to the family, which could justify some reduction in punishment.
Ultimately, Ong was sentenced to two months and two weeks in prison.
He was granted permission to defer his sentence and begin serving it from the second week of March 2026.
Under Singapore law, individuals convicted of bigamy can face up to seven years’ imprisonment as well as a possible fine.