Man who thought his Rolex was fake tried to cheat retailer in deal; $89.8k watch was genuine
Shaffiq Alkhatib
The Straits Times
April 21, 2026
Thinking that the Rolex GMT Saru he bought for around €60,000 (S$89,800) was counterfeit, a man tried to cheat a retailer by exchanging it for three other Rolex watches worth over $94,000 in total.
However, the Rolex GMT Saru, which is usually worth around $120,000, turned out to be genuine.
Despite this, Italian national Singh Deepak, 24, was dealt with in court for attempted cheating and was sentenced to seven months’ jail on April 20.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Sean Teh told the court that there are purportedly only 20 authentic Rolex GMT Saru timepieces in circulation.
“This case, involving an impossible attempt, means that there was no actual loss caused,” DPP Teh said.
He added that if the Rolex GMT Saru had been counterfeit, the amount involved would have been $94,700.
Court documents stated that in February or March 2025, Singh bought the watch from an acquaintance known only as “Matteo”.
He handed over €55,000 in cash and a Cartier bracelet worth around €5,000 in exchange for the watch.
Singh later went to watch shops to check its authenticity, and one of them told him that the serial number of a genuine Rolex GMT Saru “may have been laser engraved” on his watch.
Thinking that Matteo had cheated him, Singh assumed that the timepiece was fake and decided to sell it.
On Nov 27, 2025, he flew to Singapore and went to a watch shop in Bencoolen Street the next day.
He showed the watch and its warranty card to the shop director, who wanted to buy it.
After a negotiation, they agreed on a price of $94,700.
Singh said he did not want to receive cash for the transaction. Instead, he exchanged the watch for three other timepieces – a Rolex Submariner valued at $44,000, as well as a Rolex Daytona and a Rolex GMT, each worth more than $25,000.
Singh later handed a forged soft copy of his passport to the director for registration purposes.
He did so to escape criminal liability and any possible taxes that may be incurred during the sale.
After Singh left the shop with the three watches, the director went to nearby watch shops to get the Rolex GMT Saru examined.
DPP Teh said: “On the advice of another shop owner, the victim used a loupe to scrutinise the serial number engraved on the watch and discovered that the serial number on the Rolex GMT Saru had been washed off and laser engraved subsequently.”
After further checks, the director also assumed that the watch was fake. He tried calling Singh several times before alerting the police.
Singh eventually answered his call and said he would return to the shop
Instead, he booked a flight to Italy and was arrested at Changi Airport on the night of Nov 28, 2025.
On Dec 3, 2025, the police took the Rolex GMT Saru to the Rolex Service Centre, where a technician certified that all the parts of the watch were authentic and original.
On April 20, the prosecutor urged the court to sentence Singh to a year in jail.
He said Singh did not abandon the cheating attempt at a late stage.
“This was an accused who followed through with his attempt to cheat the victim to completion.”
Singh was represented by lawyers Monisha Cheong and Samuel Ling from LVM Law Chambers, who asked for their client to be given six months’ jail.
They said the case was “a single, unsophisticated, immediately detected attempted transaction with no actual loss suffered”.
“This is also (Singh’s) first brush with the law, having no criminal record in Italy, and he will endeavour to make the most of his life once he is released,” they added.
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