Supermax CEO Stanley Thai claims trial to insider trading charge

KUALA LUMPUR: Supermax Corporation Bhd CEO Datuk Seri Stanley Thai (pic) was charged at the Sessions Court here Monday with insider trading related to APL Industries Berhad (APLI).

Thai Kim Sim, 54, also known as Stanley Thai, claimed trial to communicating insider information to remisier Tiong Kiong Choon, 54, that was expected to have a material effect on the price and value of APLI.

According to the charge sheet, the information was an audit adjustment proposed by APLI's auditor which would result in the company reporting a higher loss for the financial year ended June 30, 2007 compared with the previously unaudited fourth quarter results for the same financial year.

The charge stated the second datum of information was that APLI would be classified as an affected issuer pursuant to the Listing Requirements of Bursa Malaysia Securities Berhad  and Practice Note 17/2005.

The information is alleged to have led Tiong to dispose the securities of APLI on the Malaysian stock market.

Thai is alleged to have committed the offence between Oct 26 and 29, 2007.

The alleged offence under Section 188(3)(a) of the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007 is punishable by a maximum 10 years prison and a fine of not less than RM1mil.

Securities Commission prosecution officer T. Chelvakumar urged the court to set bail at RM500,000 and order Thai to surrender his passport.

Counsel Datuk K. Kumaraendran pleaded for lower bail, and for his client to keep his passport as Thai needed to travel to New York next week.

Judge Abdul Rashid Daud allowed bail at RM250,000 with one surety, and ordered Thai to surrender his passport on Feb 3, 2015.

The court fixed Jan 15 for mention.

On Dec 9, Tiong was charged with disposing 6,208,500 APLI shares whilst in possession of non-public information in relation to the audit adjustments proposed by APLI’s auditors, which would result in APLI reporting a higher loss amounting to RM21.1mil for the financial year ended June 30, 2007 compared with the unaudited results of RM4.5mil for the same period.

The effect of the adjustments would result in APLI being designated as a PN 17 company.

Tiong claimed trial to disposing the APLI shares via accounts belonging to his mother-in-law, Bong Nyon and his mother, Ling Moy Yang on Oct 26, 2007 and Oct 29, 2007.