Written by Kok Shin-hui
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – A Singapore court on Friday ruled against a real estate billionaire for awarding flights and luxury hotel stays to the disgraced former transport minister, who was sentenced the previous day to prison in a mega-corruption case. He was charged with obstruction of justice and abetting a crime.
Ong Beng Seng, 78, owner of Hotel Properties Ltd. and F1 Singapore Grand Prix rights holder, was on Thursday accused of giving a large gift to S. Iswaran, who became the first former minister to do so. has been accused. Minister sentenced to prison in Singapore.
The incident is the subject of great intrigue in Singapore. Singapore is a wealthy financial center that offers ministers salaries of more than S$1 million (about $771,247) to deter corruption and boasts a reputation for clean governance.
Mr Iswaran was sentenced to 12 months in prison on charges of obstruction of justice and improperly accepting gifts in public office, while Mr Ong became the central figure in the prosecution’s case.
Ong, a Malaysian national based in Singapore, has so far not commented on the accusations. Channel NewsAsia said he would not give a plea on Friday and did not say how he would do so.
Mr Ong’s company, Singapore-listed Hotel Properties Ltd, requested a trading halt early Friday after his indictment was announced on Thursday.
During Iswaran’s trial, prosecutors said the former minister had received gifts worth more than $300,000 from Ong, including tickets to an English Premier League soccer match, the Formula 1 Grand Prix, a London musical and a private jet ticket to Doha. said.
According to the Attorney General’s Bench, Mr Ong was charged with assisting Mr Iswaran in receiving two flights and a luxury hotel stay in Doha worth S$20,848.03, and another charge with Mr Iswaran of obstruction of justice. He was charged with aiding and abetting.
This charge is two of Iswaran’s 35 charges.
The Attorney General’s Office said prosecutors would not indict Ong for his involvement in the other charges against Iswaran. The company said it could not comment further because the matter is before the courts.
The court during Mr Iswaran’s trial heard how the minister asked Mr Ong to pay for his private jet trip to Doha after learning that anti-corruption agencies had seized the aviation manifest in an unrelated case. It was tried.
Judge Vincent Hung, who handled Mr Iswaran’s case, said on Thursday that the minister’s request was a deliberate attempt to obstruct the course of justice and evade investigation.
Channel NewsAsia reported that Mr Ong’s court hearing has been postponed until pre-trial proceedings on November 15.
The Attorney General’s Office announced it would not prosecute Ram Kok Seng, another businessman named in Iswaran’s case for allegedly giving gifts to the former minister.
(1 dollar = 1.2966 Singapore dollar)
(This story has been corrected in its entirety to say Iswaran was sentenced to prison)
(Reporting by Xinghui Kok; Editing by Martin Petty, Jacqueline Wong and Peter Graff)