Building Manager Sentenced for Soliciting and Accepting Bribes

On 4 August 2021, Woo Kong Choy (“Woo”) (胡光財), a 61-year-old Singaporean male, was sentenced to a fine of S$2,400 and a penalty of S$400 for corruption offences. The offences were committed when Woo was an employee at Wisely 98 Pte Ltd who was deployed as a Building Manager at Bugis Cube.

2. As the Building Manager at Bugis Cube, Woo was responsible for issuing renovation permits and ensuring tenants purchased the public liability insurance prior to carrying out renovation works in their units. Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau’s (CPIB) investigations revealed that between April 2019 and October 2020, Woo had corruptly obtained gratification of S$200 each from three tenants at Bugis Cube as an inducement for issuing renovation permits without ensuring the purchase of the public liability insurance. Sometime in September 2020, Woo attempted to solicit a bribe from one of the three tenants on a separate occasion by reminding the tenant that she could pay him S$200 for his assistance to issue the renovation permit without the purchase of the public liability insurance. For his actions, Woo was previously charged in Court under Section 6(a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act on 22 June 2021.

3. Singapore adopts a strict zero-tolerance approach towards corruption. Any person who is convicted of a corruption offence can be fined up to S$100,000 or sentenced to imprisonment of up to five years or to both.

4. CPIB looks into all corruption complaints and reports, including anonymous ones, and can be reached via the following channels:

a) Lodge an e-Complaint;
b) Email us at report@cpib.gov.sg;
c) Call the Duty Officer at 1800-376-0000; or
d) Write to us at the CPIB Headquarters @ 2 Lengkok Bahru, S159047.

5. Where possible, the report should include the following information:

a) Where, when and how the alleged corrupt act happened?
b) Who was involved and what were their roles?
c) What was the bribe given and the favour shown?

Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau