Latest news with #SubramaniamIswaran
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
F1 tycoon pleads guilty in rare Singapore corruption case
A Singapore-based billionaire hotelier has pleaded guilty to a charge connected to a rare corruption scandal that shocked the country last year. Ong Beng Seng has admitted to abetting the obstruction of justice by helping ex-transportation minister Subramaniam Iswaran cover up evidence while he was being investigated for corruption. Ong gave expensive gifts, including an all-expenses paid trip which included a private jet ride, to Iswaran while they were engaged in official business. Ministers in Singapore cannot keep gifts unless they pay the market value of the gift to the government, and they must declare anything they receive from people they have business dealings with. Ong will be sentenced on 15 August. He originally faced up to two years in jail for abetting a public servant in obtaining gifts, while the maximum jail term he faced for the abetment of obstruction of justice is seven years. However, both prosecutors and Ong's lawyers agreed that given his poor health, a fine should be imposed instead of a jail term, with the prosecution saying "judicial mercy" should be exercised. Ong has a rare bone marrow cancer, and the court previously allowed him to travel abroad for medical and work purposes. Prosecutors argued that while Ong was pivotal in Iswaran's attempt to cover his tracks, he was much less culpable than Iswaran, who had been a sitting minister. Ong's lawyers argued that he had "simply complied" with the plan thought up by Iswaran. At Iswaran's sentencing last October, the court heard that Iswaran requested Ong bill him for a business class flight from Doha to Singapore, after he discovered that he could have been implicated while police were investigating a separate incident. The judge said that he acted with deliberation and premeditation to avoid a probe. On Monday, the 79-year-old Ong pleaded guilty to belatedly billing Iswaran for the expense. A second charge of abetting Iswaran's acceptance of the all-expenses paid trip to Doha, said to be worth around S$20,850 ($16,188; £12,194), was also taken into account. In December 2022, Ong had invited Iswaran on the trip to Qatar, saying he would take care of the trip's expenses, which included hotel accomodation and a flight to Doha on Ong's private jet. Iswaran accepted the invitation but said he would need to arrive in Singapore on a specific date, with Ong responding that he would arrange for Iswaran to travel from Doha to Singapore on a commercial flight. It was this flight, said to be worth around S$5,700, that Iswaran belatedly made payment to Ong's company for, after he found out that Singapore's corruption bureau was investigating a separate investigation relating to Ong's associates - and had seized the flight manifest which had details of his trip to Doha as part of it. He then asked Ong to have his company, Singapore GP, bill him for the trip. The two men were arrested in July 2023 and charge sheets revealed that Iswaran was gifted more than S$403,000 ($311,882; £234,586) worth of flights, hotel stays, musicals and grand prix tickets. At the time of the offences Iswaran was in the government's F1 steering committee and the chief negotiator on F1-related business matters. Born in Malaysia in 1946 - which was then Malaya - Ong moved to Singapore as a child and founded a hotel and property company in the 1980s. Ong helped bring the F1 Grand Prix to Singapore and his company Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) has brands like the Four Seasons and Marriott operating under it. Hotel Properties Limited had earlier in April said that Ong would step down as its managing director to "manage his medical conditions". Singapore's lawmakers are among the highest-paid in the world, with leaders justifying the handsome salaries by saying it combats corruption.
The Independent
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Independent
Singapore F1 tycoon pleads guilty in landmark corruption case
A billionaire, best known for bringing the Formula One night race to Singapore, has pleaded guilty to a charge linked to a landmark corruption scandal that shocked the Asian financial hub known for its squeaky clean government. Ong Beng Seng, 78, has conceded to obstructing justice by helping ex-transport minister Subramaniam Iswaran in covering up evidence as he was being investigated in a corruption case. However, Ong will be granted judicial mercy by both the prosecution and defence due to his ongoing chronic illness argued for him to be fined in lieu of imprisonment. In a case that shocked Singapore – one of the least corrupt countries globally – Ong was accused of giving kickbacks worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to Iswaran. The list of luxury gifts sent by Ong included 2022 a trip on his private jet to Doha, a stay at the Four Seasons there, and a return business class ticket worth S$5,700 ($4,422). The former transport minister was also made the chair of chairman of a committee for the F1 night race. Ong will be sentenced on 15 August. Ong initially faced up to two years in prison for abetting a public servant in accepting gifts, and up to seven years for abetting the obstruction of justice. However, the city-state's courts allow judicial mercy, allowing a more lenient sentence in exceptional mitigating circumstances, such as a terminal illness or when imprisonment could pose a high risk of endangering a life. The business tycoon had been suffering from a rare bone marrow cancer diagnosed in 2020, a type of it which is incurable cancer that affects his blood plasma cells and renders him immunocompromised. 'Ong's home environment will be more pristine than prison,' lawyer Cavinder Bull said. 'Ong is living within a narrow margin where there is no room for error.' In 2024, Iswaran was sentenced to one year in prison in 2024 for accepting gifts from Ong more than $300,000 worth of gifts, which included items such as a Brompton bicycle and race tickets. Ong gave Iswaran tickets to English Premier League soccer matches, the Singapore Formula 1 Grand Prix, and London musicals. In February, Iswaran was put under house arrest for the remainder of his sentence. At Iswaran's sentencing last October, the court was told that the minister requested Ong to bill for the business class flight from Doha to Singapore after Ong told him that the flight was being investigated by the corruption watchdog. Ong had informed Iswaran that his associates had been questioned, and a private flight manifest with Iswaran's name on it for a flight had been seized by the corruption watchdog during investigations. Ong pleaded guilty to belated billing Iswaran for the expenses and on a second charge for abetting Iswaran's acceptance of an all-expenses-paid trip to Doha, valued at approximately S$20,850 (US$16,188). Both were arrested in July 2023, and it was alleged that Iswaran received gifts worth more than S$403,000 ($311,882). Born in 1946 in what was then Malaya, Ong moved to Singapore as a child and went on to establish Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) in the 1980s – a hotel and property firm with global brands such as Four Seasons and Marriott under its umbrella. The current contract, secured through a multiyear agreement with Singapore's tourism board, is set to run until 2028.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
F1 tycoon pleads guilty in rare Singapore corruption case
A billionaire hotelier has pleaded guilty to abetting offences in a rare corruption case that gripped Singapore and landed a former minister in jail. Ong Beng Seng is accused of giving expensive gifts, including tickets to the Formula 1 Grand Prix, hotel stays and a ride on a private jet to ex-transportation minister Subramaniam Iswaran while they were engaged in official business. Ministers in Singapore cannot keep gifts unless they pay the market value of the gift to the government, and they must declare anything they receive from people they have business dealings with. The case shocked many in Singapore, a financial hub that prides itself on a squeaky clean image. The two men were arrested in July 2023, in a rare corruption scandal that gripped the country. Charge sheets revealed that Iswaran was gifted more than S$403,000 ($311,882; £234,586) worth of flights, hotel stays, musicals and grand prix tickets. Singapore's lawmakers are among the highest-paid in the world, with some ministers earning more than S$1 million ($758,000). Leaders justify the handsome salaries by saying it combats corruption. Mr Ong helped brought the Formula 1 Grand Prix to Singapore and his company Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) has brands like the Four Seasons and the Hard Rock Hotel operating under them. At the time of the offences Iswaran was in the government's F1 steering committee and the chief negotiator on F1-related business matters. Mr Ong has been accused of abetting Iswaran in obtaining an all expenses paid trip to Doha, said to be worth around S$20,850 ($16,188; £12,194). He is also charged with abetting the obstruction of justice by helping Iswaran make a payment to the Singapore Grand Prix for a business flight ticket from Doha to Singapore. He faces up to two years in jail for abetting a public servant in obtaining gifts, while the maximum jail term he faces for the abetment of obstruction of justice is seven years. Born in Malaysia in 1946, Mr Ong moved to Singapore as a child and founded a hotel and property company in the 1980s. Mr Ong has a rare bone marrow cancer, and the court previously allowed him to travel abroad for medical and work purposes. His company, Hotel Properties Limited, had earlier in April said that Ong would step down as its managing director "manage his medical conditions".
BBC News
6 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Singapore: Tycoon Ong Beng Seng pleads guilty in corruption case
A billionaire hotelier is set to plead guilty to abetting offences in a rare corruption case that gripped Singapore and landed a former minister in Beng Seng is accused of giving expensive gifts, including tickets to the Formula 1 Grand Prix, hotel stays and a ride on a private jet to ex-transportation minister Subramaniam Iswaran while they were engaged in official business. Ministers in Singapore cannot keep gifts unless they pay the market value of the gift to the government, and they must declare anything they receive from people they have business dealings case shocked many in Singapore, a financial hub that prides itself on a squeaky clean image. The two men were arrested in July 2023, in a rare corruption scandal that gripped the sheets revealed that Iswaran was gifted more than S$403,000 ($311,882; £234,586) worth of flights, hotel stays, musicals and grand prix lawmakers are among the highest-paid in the world, with some ministers earning more than S$1 million ($758,000). Leaders justify the handsome salaries by saying it combats Ong helped brought the Formula 1 Grand Prix to Singapore and his company Hotel Properties Limited (HPL) has brands like the Four Seasons and the Hard Rock Hotel operating under them. At the time of the offences Iswaran was in the government's F1 steering committee and the chief negotiator on F1-related business Ong has been accused of abetting Iswaran in obtaining an all expenses paid trip to Doha, said to be worth around S$20,850 ($16,188; £12,194). He is also charged with abetting the obstruction of justice by helping Iswaran make a payment to the Singapore Grand Prix for a business flight ticket from Doha to Singapore. He faces up to two years in jail for abetting a public servant in obtaining gifts, while the maximum jail term he faces for the abetment of obstruction of justice is seven in Malaysia in 1946, Mr Ong moved to Singapore as a child and founded a hotel and property company in the Ong has a rare bone marrow cancer, and the court previously allowed him to travel abroad for medical and work company, Hotel Properties Limited, had earlier in April said that Ong would step down as its managing director "manage his medical conditions".
