Man who married in NZ jailed for two months for bigamy

Tan chose to marry Ms Tan in New Zealand because he knew that he could not register their marriage in Singapore. Photo / File / Thinkstock

A Singaporean man who married his long-time girlfriend in New Zealand has been jailed for two months in Singapore for bigamy.

Tee Wee Tan, 48, pleaded guilty to entering into the marriage with Esther Wee Yee Tan, now 39, at the Registry of Marriages in Auckland on February 25, 2010, while he was still married to another woman in Singapore.

A Singapore district court heard that Tan registered his marriage to Goh Geok Tin in Singapore in October 1988, and they have three children aged between 12 to 18.

When he married Ms Tan in Auckland, he stated that he was "never married or in a civil union".

The Straits Times reported that Tan got to know Ms Tan in 2000 while he was working as a chief executive officer of an events management company.

They entered into a relationship the following year.

Tan told Ms Tan about his first marriage but assured her that he intended to file for separation and even produced documents to show that he was filing for divorce, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Elaine Liew.

Tan chose to marry Ms Tan in New Zealand because he knew that he could not register their marriage in Singapore.

He also claimed he had unresolved "tax issues" in Singapore that were linked to his first wife.

Tan will begin his sentence on January 7 next year after his lawyer told the court his client wished to spend the holiday season with his children.

Under Singapore law, it is illegal for a married person to marry again in Singapore or elsewhere, and could be convicted even if the second marriage was just a customary one.

He could have been jailed up to seven years and fined for bigamy.

- Lincoln Tan