SINGAPORE, Sept. 5 -- Singaporeans recruited into a long-running investment scheme in China were promised cheap luxury living and a share of Nanning's economic boom, but some found themselves closely watched and pressured to recruit friends and relatives.

One Singaporean public servant, identified only as Alice, told The Straits Times she was taken on a five-day trip to Nanning in Guangxi back in March after a friend pitched it as an investment opportunity.

She said she was not allowed to explore the city alone, with someone accompanying her everywhere and even following her to the toilet.

During a city tour, she was told: "We cannot get out of the car at all."

Alice said she was also made to attend mandatory sales sessions in a condo...