Two Charged For Corruption
On 17 March 2021, two individuals will be charged in court for alleged corruption involving a total sum of about S$121,000. They are:
a) Chan Kuen Thong [“Chan”] (陈建堂, 63-year-old male Singaporean), a Senior Division Manager of Takashimaya Singapore Ltd at the material time;
b) Mandhir Singh Karpal Singh [“Mandhir”] (29-year-old male Malaysian National), a Director of White Knights Security Services Pte Ltd (“WKSS”) at the material time.
2. Between February 2017 and May 2020, Chan allegedly accepted corrupt gratifications totalling about S$121,000 from Mandhir over 20 occasions. These were allegedly meant as an inducement for Chan to refrain from issuing claims for liquidated damages to WKSS arising from the monthly shortfalls of security officers provided by WKSS at Takashimaya Departmental Store. Mandhir and Chan will each face 20 charges for offences punishable under Section 6(b) and Section 6(a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act respectively.
3. Singapore adopts a strict zero-tolerance approach towards corruption. Any person who is convicted of a corruption offence can be fined up to $100,000 or sentenced to imprisonment of up to five years or to both.
4. Companies are strongly advised to put in place robust procedures in areas such as procurement and internal audit to prevent falling victim to corrupt acts by their employees. Guidance for companies on measures to prevent corruption can be found in PACT: A Practical Anti-Corruption Guide for Businesses in Singapore, which is available on CPIB’s website. Companies are also strongly encouraged to obtain certification under the Singapore Standard (SS) ISO 37001 – Anti-Bribery Management Systems, which is designed to help companies implement or enhance an anti-bribery management system to reduce corporate risk and costs related to bribery.
Reference Links:
Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau