16 charged in ad contract corruption case

SINGAPORE – Sixteen individuals faced charges in court on 29 January for a series of corruption and cheating offenses related to advertising and servicing contracts.

The accused hail from prominent organizations including British Council, Sephora Asia, Fei Siong Food Management, SMRT’s Stellar Lifestyle, and ComfortDelGro’s Moove Media.

Among those charged is Low Lee Soon, a 61-year-old arts director at Moove Media, accused of accepting bribes totaling S$160,000 in cash loans from Xu Zhiping, 38, a shareholder of advertising firms Channelbytes, Channelink, and Multiverse Media.

According to the Corruption Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB), Xu and Jane Hong Hoe Chun, 53, conspired to advance their business interests with Moove Media and ComfortDelGro.

The details of the contracts involved were not disclosed in the charge sheets.

During the investigation of Low, Xu, and Hong, CPIB uncovered offenses involving an additional 13 individuals who were subsequently charged on the same day.

One such individual is Muhammadd Fauzi bin Abdul Rahman, 41, accused of accepting bribes worth approximately S$506,107 from Xu, Hong, Lee Lian Hiang, and Tan Han Leong between March 2019 and January 2022.

Fauzi was a store planning manager at Pan Pacific Retail Management Singapore during the alleged offenses.

Further allegations include a case where Muhammadd Fauzi purportedly cheated Jane Hong of S$500 by falsely claiming a need for a security guard replacement at a Don Don Donki store, managed by his company.

Tan Ming Yean, 42, an employee of Stellar Lifestyle, stands accused of accepting bribes totaling S$7,212 from Xu to promote the business interests of Channelbytes and Channelink with Stellar Lifestyle.

Another accused, Low Kim Yong, a 44-year-old assistant project manager at Sephora Asia, allegedly accepted cash bribes and a used Microsoft laptop from four individuals to further their business interests with Sephora.

Lee Kok Keong, 50, a former director at British Council, purportedly received cash bribes amounting to S$100,300 from Lee Lian Hiang and Ong Seck Cheng between September 2014 and February 2020.

Tan Han Leong, along with Moh Jun Hao, stands accused of conspiring to give cash bribes to various individuals, including Benjamin Ting Ping Lin, an IT executive at Fei Siong Food Management.

Ting is further charged with offering inducements to conceal corrupt dealings between Fei Siong and Secured Retail Solutions.

Lee Lian Hiang allegedly facilitated bribes totalling S$12,800 to Au Yong Siong Fatt and Juraimee Ab Hamid to further the business interests of BuildCool Engineering with Civil Service Club and HomeTeamNS, respectively.

In a separate incident, Lee Lian Hiang is accused of conspiring with Tan Wee Meng to provide falsified quotations to HomeTeamNS, misleading them into believing that Triple L Aircon and Triple L Aircon & Engineering had project bids.

All accused individuals face charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act, which carries a maximum penalty of a S$100,000 fine and a five-year jail term for each offense.

Those convicted of cheating may face fines and imprisonment for up to three years.