Singapore Is Prosecuting a U.S. Tourist For Falsely Claiming Marriott Friends&Family Discounts
A curious case of Friends&Family rate abuse is coming from Singapore, where the government is currently prosecuting a U.S. citizen who claimed discounts at Marriott properties after buying certificates on Craigslist.
The guest purchased access to Marriott F&F rates through Craigslist and then falsely claimed on the required certificate that she is the sister of the associate listed on the document, as verified by hotel management.
My first thought about this is what caused a random manager at a hotel in Singapore to contact the property in the U.S. where this associate, whose name was on the F&F certificate, actually works.
I can’t imagine staff have that much time on their hands to willy-nilly write to Marriott properties worldwide to verify friends and family rates; something else must have been wrong with this guest’s profile that flagged the transaction. Was this guest a heavy complainer during the stay?
As reported by the Straits Times, this incident already happened more than two years ago in 2024 and is just now being adjudicated.
An American woman travelled to Singapore claiming to be the sister of a Marriott associate to repeatedly obtain discounted room rates.
Kao Jane Zhao, 41, who obtained nearly $3,400 in discounts, pleaded guilty to a cheating charge involving more than $1,500.
Eight other charges, including those linked to the remaining amount, will be considered when she is sentenced in October. She has since made full restitution.
The court heard that in 2024, she was in the US when she went on classified advertisements website Craiglist and bought an Explore membership – a programme by hotel company Marriott Bonvoy – from an unknown seller for US$300 (S$380).
State Prosecuting Officer Zakir Hussain said Kao knew the seller had falsely stated in the Explore membership authorisation form that she was the sister of one Michael Melendez, a Marriott associate.
She also knew that only Marriott associates and their family members could receive discounted rates for their rooms at participating properties worldwide by presenting the “Explore by Marriott Bonvoy Program Authorisation Form” at the front desk. Such properties included Sheraton Towers Singapore.
On Sept 8, 2024, Kao checked into the hotel after presenting the form to its front-desk manager, falsely representing herself as Melendez’s sister.
She then dishonestly induced Sheraton Towers to deliver discounted room rates to stay at the hotel for five nights.
After that, she extended her stay at the hotel on four separate occasions for another five consecutive nights at the discounted rate.
Kao checked out on Sept 18, 2024, only to return five days later to stay four more nights.
In total, she received more than $1,500 in discounts.
During her final stay, the manager verified her authorisation form with his counterparts in the US and found out she was not Melendez’s sister.
The manager alerted the police and Kao was arrested.
On Sept 4, defence lawyer Gino Hardial Singh from Abbots Chambers asked the court to sentence her to a fine of not more than $5,000, adding her conduct arose from poor judgment.
For cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to three years, fined or both.
Do they have nothing better to do in Singapore?
This sounds like a Marriott problem to me; take it up with the corporate office and maybe start to put a more modern system in place that no longer relies on certificates, but rather an electronic nomination directly through the online account of the associate and the guest, like Hilton and Hyatt do it.
That being said, sometimes things don’t add up even on first sight. You have a guest whose name is Kao Jane Zhao, who is obviously Chinese, and she claims that the associate listed as Michael Melendez (Hispanic) is her brother!?
Yes, sure, despite the names, there are ways this might be possible, but it still doesn’t pass the initial smell test.
I wonder where this defendant is currently staying. I doubt she has been in Singapore these past two years awaiting the outcome of this ridiculous trial. Why does it take them two years to adjudicate something like this?
I’m not a big fan of these programs as a status customer. When staying on rates associated with an employee, you usually have to be on your best behavior and can’t lodge complaints or be eligible for upgrades. I’d rather pay retail rates and be eligible for compensation and full elite treatment.
Conclusion
A female Marriott guest is currently facing a criminal prosecution in Singapore for using Marriott Friends & Family discount certificates that she purchased online and then presented at the Sheraton Towers in Singapore under false pretenses.
Marriott operates its F&F program with physical paper certificates (hello, 2026!?) that list the names of the employees associated with Marriott, as well as the identifier of the employee’s property. Naturally, it’s possible for hotels to verify the authenticity of the relationship, and it turned out to be fraudulent.
The way that Marriott has set this program up is ripe for fraud and abuse; they should really do something about it and change it to an electronic nominee like other hotel chains have it already.
