Ong Beng Seng set to plead guilty to charge linked to Iswaran

SINGAPORE: Property tycoon Ong Beng Seng intends to plead guilty on Apr 2 to a charge linked to former transport minister S Iswaran.

Ong, 79, was charged with two offences in October 2024.

The first charge accuses him of abetting the former minister in obtaining an all-expenses paid trip to Doha worth about S$20,850 (US$15,500) in December 2022.

The second charge alleges that Ong abetted the obstruction of justice by intentionally aiding Iswaran in May 2023, when the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau had begun its probe, by paying S$5,700 to Singapore GP for a business class flight ticket from Doha to Singapore over the same trip. 

Following a pre-trial conference on Friday (Feb 28), his decision to plead guilty was reflected in an update on the court’s case management system. His bail of S$800,000 has been extended.

Ong is the managing director of Hotel Properties Limited (HPL). In an announcement on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) on Friday night, HPL said Ong intends to plead guilty to the second charge and consents to having the first charge be taken into consideration for sentencing.

When contacted, Ong's lawyers referred CNA to his spokesperson, who declined to comment.

HPL said the nominating committee is of the view that Ong "continues to be suitable to carry out his duties and responsibilities as managing director". 

Earlier this month, it was reported that Ong had been diagnosed with bone marrow cancer.

Two people close to Ong confirmed his condition, with one saying he has multiple myeloma. This is a rare type of bone marrow cancer characterised by abnormal expansion of malignant plasma cells in the bone marrow.

The 79-year-old has been undergoing chemotherapy and has previously asked the court if he could travel abroad for medical treatment. Apart from his prominence as a hotelier, Ong is widely known as the man who brought Formula 1 to Singapore in 2008.

Former transport minister Iswaran was sentenced in October 2024 to 12 months' jail after pleading guilty to four charges under Section 165 of the Penal Code, which forbids all public servants from obtaining any valuable thing from someone involved with them in an official capacity.

These were for obtaining valuables from Ong and construction boss Lum Kok Seng while he held portfolios that had official dealings with the two men.

Iswaran also pleaded guilty to one charge of obstructing justice by belatedly repaying the cost of a flight to Doha.

Another 30 charges under Section 165 were taken into consideration for sentencing.

Across all charges, he admitted to taking S$403,300 worth of valuables over seven years.

These include musical tickets, Formula 1 events and football matches, as well as bottles of alcohol and a Brompton bicycle worth thousands.

He was placed in home detention on Feb 7.