Singapore charges property billionaire linked to convicted minister's case

Singapore charges property billionaire linked to convicted minister's case

By Xinghui Kok

A Singapore court charged a property billionaire on Friday with obstructing justice and abetting offences, over flights and luxury hotel accommodation given to a disgraced ex-transport minister sentenced to jail the previous day in a major corruption case.

Ong Beng Seng, the 78-year-old owner of Hotel Properties Ltd and rights holder to the Singapore Grand Prix Formula One race, is accused of giving high-value gifts to ex-minister S. Iswaran, who on Thursday became the first former cabinet member to be given a prison sentence in Singapore.

The case has been the subject of major intrigue in Singapore, a wealthy financial hub that offers ministers salaries of more than S$1 million dollars ($771,247) to deter graft and prides itself on its reputation for clean governance.

Iswaran was sentenced to 12 months in jail for obstructing justice and improperly receiving gifts as a public servant, with Ong a central part of the prosecution's case.

Ong, a Malaysian citizen based in Singapore, has so far issued no comment on the accusations. Channel NewsAsia said he entered no plea on Friday and did not indicate how he would plead.

Ong's firm, Singapore-listed Hotel Properties Ltd, requested a trading halt early on Friday following Thursday's announcement that he would be charged.

Prosecutors during Iswaran's trial said the ex-minister received gifts from Ong worth more than $300,000, including tickets to English Premier League soccer matches, the F1 Grand Prix, London musicals and a ride on a private jet to Doha.

Ong was charged with one count of abetting Iswaran's receiving of two flights and luxury hotel accommodation in Doha worth S$20,848.03, and one count of abetting Iswaran in obstruction of justice, said the attorney-general's chambers.

The charges correspond to two of Iswaran's 35 charges.

The attorney-general's chambers said the prosecution will not charge Ong for his involvement in other charges against Iswaran. It said it was unable to comment further as the matter is before the court.

The court during Iswaran's trial heard how the minister had asked Ong to bill him for the Doha trip on the private jet after he discovered the anti-graft agency had seized the flight manifest for an unrelated case.

Justice Vincent Hoong, who presided over Iswaran's case, on Thursday said the minister's request to be billed was a deliberate move to obstruct the course of justice and try to evade investigation.

Channel NewsAsia said Ong's court hearing was adjourned until pre-trial proceedings on Nov. 15.

The attorney-general's chambers said it will not charge Lum Kok Seng, another businessman named in Iswaran's charges as having given gifts to the former minister.