A 41-year-old American woman posed as the sister of a Marriott employee to get a discount on a hotel stay in Singapore, and now she faces up to three years in jail. It’s a good reminder that if you’re going to do something stupid, don’t do it in Singapore, because it rarely ends well.
Traveler caught using fraudulent Marriott discount
One of the perks of working for Marriott (or any major hotel chain, for that matter), is that you get discounted hotel stays. In some cases, you can even share those perks with friends and family.
In the case of Marriott, the hotel giant has the Explore by Marriott Bonvoy program, and the idea is that employees and their direct family members can receive deep discounts on the cost of Marriott stays worldwide.
That brings us to this situation, which initially dates back to 2024 (but is only now being fully prosecuted). A woman from the United States purchased an Explore by Marriott Bonvoy membership on Craigslist for around 300 USD.
Obviously it’s against the rules for this to be bought or sold. This also required the Marriott employee to falsely claim that he was the brother of the woman who purchased the pass, and according to prosecutors, she was aware that this arrangement broke the rules.
When redeeming the Explore by Marriott Bonvoy membership, the traveler needs to present the authorization form at check-in, which is where the relationship between the employee and the person using the membership is disclosed. In this case, the woman tried to check in at the Sheraton Towers Singapore.
She used her discount for a stay of five nights. After that, she extended her stay at the hotel on four separate occasions for another five consecutive nights. She then checked out, only to return five days later to stay four more nights. In total, she received close to 1,200 USD in discounts
During her final stay, the manager at the property decided to verify her authorization form with contacts in the United States, and found out that she wasn’t actually the relative of the person she claimed to be connected to. At that point, the manager alerted the police, and the traveler was arrested.
She has already made full restitution, but still faces a cheating charge, which can come with a jail sentence of up to three years, along with eight other charges. Her defense attorney has asked the court to sentence her to a fine of not more than 3,940 USD, arguing that her conduct arose from poor judgment.
This traveler really didn’t think this situation through
In addition to the general issue of buying and selling these kinds of benefits (which breaks the rules), there are two main issues.
First of all, as I hinted at above, if you’re going to break the rules, Singapore really isn’t the place to do that. The country has among the strictest rules that you’ll find anywhere, both in terms of getting in trouble in the first place, and in terms of the severity of the punishment for breaking the rules.
I suspect that in the United States, this would’ve been handled as an internal matter, and we would’ve probably just seen the employee fired, and maybe the woman forced to pay back the amount “stolen,” rather than the police immediately getting involved.
Second of all, it also sounds like this woman was really bad at trying to fly under the radar. Most hotel employees are super busy and don’t have much free time, so wouldn’t typically try to verify if two people are actually related, if they had no reason to believe something was off.
However, I imagine that this woman booking a five night stay, then extending that stay by five nights on four separate occasions, and then staying yet again, definitely didn’t help her with flying under the radar. I wouldn’t be surprised if she also came across as a bit clueless about how it works, required a lot of attention, etc.
So I feel bad in the sense that I’m sure she didn’t think this all through, or realize what she was opening herself up to. But still… c’mon!
Bottom line
An American traveler bought a Marriott hotel stay discount perk on Craigslist, even though it’s intended only for family members of employees. She then tried to use that benefit at a Sheraton in Singapore, and was successful. But then she extended her stay by five nights (on four separate occasions), and then checked out, only to check back in again.
The manager became suspicious, and it was determined that there wasn’t actually any relation between the employee and the guest using the benefit. That’s not going to end well anywhere, but it’s especially not going to end well in Singapore, a country where rules matter, and penalties are strict.
What do you make of this Marriott hotel stay gone wrong?
A classic case of FAFO. No sympathy here.
For those saying how this is an exaggerated reaction of the hotel: it's Singapore. It's a very crowded nation where everyone still has the decency to be considerate, and where that attitude is partially enforced by very strict rules, in addition to having such a local culture. Once in Rome, act like a Roman. When in Singapore... and that's where Americans generally fail to understand that...
A classic case of FAFO. No sympathy here.
For those saying how this is an exaggerated reaction of the hotel: it's Singapore. It's a very crowded nation where everyone still has the decency to be considerate, and where that attitude is partially enforced by very strict rules, in addition to having such a local culture. Once in Rome, act like a Roman. When in Singapore... and that's where Americans generally fail to understand that their laws, rights and constitution only are applicable in the USA. Apart from that: starting with a five night booking and then gradually extending night by night until 20 something nights will raise a few eyebrows, especially if discounts are to be provided due to some fancy card will of course catch attention. Sure, travel plans can change, but this is quite extraordinary.
No bad words about Singapore, though. It's still one of the most amazing places on earth. Super safe, super organized, with lots to see and do and some of the best cuisine on the planet. I'm looking forward to go back there next year.
Sheraton towers is a terrible hotel. It’s very old and musty. Location isn’t as great as the others in Orchard. There was also mysterious death there of one of the guests. The management had a sort of attitude. I wouldn’t be surprised if the management was just looking for trouble.
What I learned from reading this is that Sheraton Towers Singapore called the police on one of their guests. Did they talk to the guest first or immediately escalate to the police? If they called police on a guest without confronting the guest first, then I would be scared of staying there. What if it had instead been a misunderstanding and the police had gotten involved? Wow.
It's Singapore.
Draco Authoritarian rules.
First of all this should have not gone so far if the hotel staff or some supervior on duty or the same manager who got Suspicous reported to the police team Front office Desk must have done the Verification Check in the first place before her check inn
this whole mess should have avoided !!!
I completely blame the hotel front desk not doing their job which they are supposed to do also I blame her using falsifying documents & lieing !!!
It appears she may be a "travel influencer" name matches with Singapore and Marriott content eyeofamuse
And why are you discriminating "influencers"?
The whole repeatedly extending is a pretty strange behavior for trying to be unobtrusive or un-scrutinized. Did she really like the place? Couldn't plan ahead for some reason?
So what happened to the employee that sold it to her? I would think that would be the bigger crime.
So she saved $85 a night? But it cost her $300. So net net-She saved $65 a night.
Very common to bash Singapore while in the US, there are clowns like AOC&Trump and crooks that rob and kill Americans in their home towns.
I think we need an OMAAT review of the Sheraton Towers Singapore! "Rooms - adequate. Dining - uninspired but sufficient. Staff - great attention to some details, but failed to provide the welcome amenity."
The only reason she got caught is because she was too greedy!! A few nights stay is fine, The longer you stay, the more suspicious we become! No one at the front desk has time to verify this information really. I never did unless you caused a problem or started asking for too much. One phone call and you are out and the family member is banned from the program.
“So I feel bad in the sense that I’m sure she didn’t think this all through, or realize what she was opening herself up to.”
No sympathy from me. Anybody who BUYS use of a friends-and-family discount, especially on a website that is a haven for scams and stolen goods, and gets caught deserves whatever consequences follow.
Singapore, former HK (before 97), Switzerland and Scandinavian countries consistently rank at the top of Corruption Perception Index. Lee Kwan Yew was famously known for telling an CIA agent who attempted to bribe his lieutenant to commit a crime " You do not know who you are dealing with". It applies same punishment to foreigners without leniency, despite the intense pressure of a more powerful foreign nation. If a US executive violates the rule in...
Singapore, former HK (before 97), Switzerland and Scandinavian countries consistently rank at the top of Corruption Perception Index. Lee Kwan Yew was famously known for telling an CIA agent who attempted to bribe his lieutenant to commit a crime " You do not know who you are dealing with". It applies same punishment to foreigners without leniency, despite the intense pressure of a more powerful foreign nation. If a US executive violates the rule in Singapore, he will face the same consequence as an ordinary citizen. Leadership and culture dictate the nation's destiny. Should we still be proud to rank above Nigeria, Somalia, Russia and India in Corruption Perception Index in today's environment?
"For crimes mostly dealing with financial deception, fines and restitution seem more appropriate" clearly explains why no US financial executive served time in prison for the 2008 Depression, despite its widespread havoc and carnage inflicted on the poor and working class at home and abroad. Paradoxically, when B of A bought Merrill Lynch in 2008, its CEO Thain negotiated to obtain $50M severance package to fold the company, at the chagrin of B of A CEO Lewis.
Prime Minister Lee Kwan Yew did not execute the CIA agent. He did not torture the agent. He refused a bribe by the CIA. The agent was released just for a written apology.
Singapore is a dictatorship, but Switzerland and those Scandinavian countries are not.
Craigslist is still a thing? Also, don't do anything stupid....in Singapore or anywhere!
I wonder if using a corporate discount code for a company you are not actually an employee of would be equally problematic. It is something I do all the time and never contemplated that I might be taking a legal risk! Definitely won't be doing it in Singapore now...
Don't do it for a rental car because if there is a collision, you are responsible for the damage
The real tragedy is that she did this to stay at a Sheraton, the Oldsmobile of hotel brands....
Some Sheratons are fantastic. Try the Sheraton Doha. One of my best hotel stays. A fabulous property with great elite treatment.
That was the problem with Oldsmobile - no clear brand identity, inconsistency, and vague mid-market. The Sheraton brand itself never tells you what you are guaranteed to get. Everything varies by property, and many of them are terrible.
funny to be reading this just after leaving the exact hotel pictured, for a second i thought 'Did Ben just post my hotel room'
What’s the deal with the curtains in the room? Looks like someone hung on them to pull them down in the middle.
Yeah there's certainly something weird about the design: they mysteriously broke at the end of my stay as well
I always found Marriott's employee discount program to be the worst among the major brands. $1200 saved across 29 nights (or $41 per night) seems to be another data point confirming this.
Years ago I went to Singapore. I remember the flight attendants making several announcements that drug activity in Singapore was punishable by death. It was even printed on the back of my Thai Airlines boarding pass.
Singapore is not the place to FAFO. But some morons will anyway.
She ought to pay the bill in the first place , and not try to game the system . Or , she could have gone to Penang and the "Snake Temple" .
There're far, far fewer crimes in Singapore than in the US, so police in Singapore do have a lot more time to get involved in minor crimes or rule violations.
Remember the American kid that was caned in Singapore for scratching cars with a key ("keying")j.
He was flown home on Northwest and they had to pad the seat for him!
The US should adopt this for mischievous crimes.
“if you’re going to do something stupid, don’t do it in Singapore” 100%. Impersonation isn’t great, but the punishment here seems disproportionate (if it were the US, we’d arge 8th Amendment, protection against ‘cruel and unusual punishment’). For crimes mostly dealing with financial deception, fines and restitution seem more appropriate.
Now, the real question is, would Singapore hold Marriott executives accountable in the same way (jail time) if they lied to customers, say, by...
“if you’re going to do something stupid, don’t do it in Singapore” 100%. Impersonation isn’t great, but the punishment here seems disproportionate (if it were the US, we’d arge 8th Amendment, protection against ‘cruel and unusual punishment’). For crimes mostly dealing with financial deception, fines and restitution seem more appropriate.
Now, the real question is, would Singapore hold Marriott executives accountable in the same way (jail time) if they lied to customers, say, by devaluing their program, not providing upgrades when upgrades are indeed available, etc. No, of course not. Rules for thee…
i agree marriott corporate should be in jail too....
I remember one of my earlier stays at this property some 23 years ago or so. They would upgrade Platinums nicely back then, had no lounge and don’t recall being given breakfast; and they wouldn’t upgrade to the “Towers”.
Back then, it and the St Regis were notable to me for being among the few Asia-Pacific hotels being quite interested in proof of eligibility for the negotiated rate I was using while hotel hopping.