Singapore-based Malaysian billionaire pleads guilty in corruption case

The Star

Property tycoon Ong Beng Seng pleaded guilty to one charge of obstructing justice on Monday (Aug 4) in a landmark corruption case that led to the jailing of Singapore's former transport minister S. Iswaran last year.  Read more at https://tinyurl.com/4j4c427k  WATCH MORE: https://thestartv.com/c/news SUBSCRIBE: https://cutt.ly/TheStar LIKE: https://fb.com/TheStarOnline

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00:00Singapore-based property tycoon Ong Beng Seng pleaded guilty to one charge of

00:05obstructing justice on Monday in a landmark corruption case that led to the

00:09jailing of former Transport Minister S. Iswaran last year. However, both the

00:13prosecution and defense agreed to grant Ong judicial mercy given his chronic

00:19illness and argued for him to be fined in lieu of imprisonment. He will be

00:24sentenced on August 15th. A second charge of abetting an offense was also taken

00:28into consideration. The defense submitted that Ong suffers from multiple myeloma,

00:33an incurable cancer that affects his blood plasma cells and renders him

00:37immunocompromised. The case has been the subject of major intrigue in Singapore

00:41that prides itself on its reputation for clean governance. In October 2024, Iswaran

00:47was sentenced to 12 months in prison, the first time a former cabinet member had

00:52ever been jailed in Singapore, on charges of obstructing justice and receiving more

00:56than $300,000 worth of gifts. In February, Iswaran was put under house arrest for the

01:02remainder of his sentence. Ong gave Iswaran tickets to English Premier League

01:06matches, the Singapore Formula, one Grand Prix, London musicals and a ride on a

01:11private jet among other favors. Iswaran was an advisor to the Singapore Grand

01:16Prix's steering committee, while Ong owns the rights to the race. The billionaire

01:20stepped down as managing director of Singapore-listed hotel properties in April.

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