SINGAPORE: Property tycoon Ong Beng Seng, who faces two charges in relation to former transport minister S Iswaran’s case, has had his guilty plea adjourned, court records show.
The 79-year-old was originally set to plead guilty on Thursday (Jul 3), but this has been changed to a pre-trial conference on Jul 8 at 9.30am.
In response to CNA’s queries, the judiciary said on Wednesday that both sides had asked for more time to file sentencing submissions.
The application was granted by a district judge.
Ong was handed two charges in October 2024, which correspond to those that Mr Iswaran pleaded guilty to in September 2024.
The Singapore-based Malaysian businessman is accused of abetting Mr Iswaran in obtaining an all-expenses-paid trip to Doha worth about S$20,850 in December 2022.
These include an outbound flight on Ong’s private plane from Singapore to Doha, one night’s stay in the Four Seasons Hotel Doha, and a business class flight from Doha to Singapore.
The second charge alleges that Ong abetted the obstruction of justice by intentionally aiding Mr Iswaran to make payment of S$5,700 to Singapore GP for a business class flight ticket from Doha to Singapore. This took place in May 2023, when the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau began its probe.
Ong was the managing director of Hotel Properties Limited (HPL), which previously stated in a Singapore Exchange (SGX) announcement that Ong would plead guilty to the charge of obstructing justice, while admitting to have the other charge taken into consideration for sentencing.
He stepped down on Apr 29 to “devote more time to manage his medical conditions”, according to a bourse filing by the company.
Ong has been undergoing chemotherapy for bone marrow cancer and he previously obtained permission to travel abroad for medical-related purposes.
Mr Iswaran was sentenced to 12 months’ jail in October 2024. He was placed on home detention on Feb 7, and has completed his emplacement and been out of prison’s custody since Jun 6.
