SINGAPORE: Property tycoon Ong Beng Seng will plead guilty at a later date in the case linked to former transport minister S. Iswaran, after his lawyers asked for more time to obtain his medical reports.
Ong, 79, was scheduled to plead guilty on April 2 to one count of abetting the obstruction of justice.
A spokesperson for Ong said the billionaire’s lawyers had requested at a pre-trial conference on Wednesday (March 26) for more time to obtain detailed reports from his doctors on his medical condition, and the ongoing monitoring and treatment required.
Said the spokesperson: “This will ensure that all relevant information can be presented to, and appropriately considered by, the prosecution and the court.
“As such, the plead guilty mention, which was earlier fixed on April 2, will be moved to a later date - to be fixed once the medical reports are obtained.”
Ong is represented by a team of lawyers, including Aaron Lee from Allen and Gledhill.
He was charged on Oct 4, 2024, with abetting a public servant in obtaining gifts and with abetting the obstruction of justice.
Section 165 makes it an offence for a public servant to accept anything of value from any person with whom he is involved in an official capacity without payment or with inadequate payment.
According to court documents, Ong allegedly instigated Iswaran to obtain a valuable item in December 2022 by offering the then minister a trip from Singapore to Doha.
The flight on Ong’s private plane was valued at US$7,700 (S$10,400).
Ong, who is the managing director of Hotel Properties Limited, also allegedly arranged a one-night stay in Four Seasons Hotel Doha with a value of $4,737.63, and a business-class flight from Doha to Singapore, valued at $5,700, for Iswaran.
According to court documents, he alerted Iswaran that the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) had seized the flight manifest for the December 2022 trip, prompting Iswaran to ask the tycoon to bill him for the flight to avoid investigations.
In an announcement on the Singapore Exchange on Feb 28, Hotel Properties Limited said Ong intends to plead guilty to the obstruction charge and consents to having the other charge be taken into consideration for sentencing.
Ong was among a number of individuals called up by the CPIB over the Iswaran probe.
He is known as the man who brought Formula One (F1) to Singapore in 2008 – the first night race in the sport’s history. He owns the rights to the Singapore Grand Prix.
Iswaran was the chairman of the F1 steering committee and the chief negotiator with race promoter Singapore GP on business matters related to the race.
The two men had worked in the mid-2000s to convince then Formula One Group chief executive Bernie Ecclestone to make Singapore the venue for the sport’s first night race.
Iswaran, 62, faced a total of 35 charges, most of which involved Ong.
The Attorney-General’s Chambers had said no additional charges will be brought against Ong over the former minister’s case.
Iswaran was sentenced to 12 months’ jail on Oct 3 for, among other things, accepting a number of valuable items from Ong.
For abetting the obstruction of justice, Ong can be jailed for up seven years, fined, or both. - The Straits Times/ANN
