The scheduled trial started on Sept 24, more than eight months after Iswaran was first charged.

In a surprising twist, shortly after Justice Vincent Hoong started proceedings at 10am, Iswaran’s lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, said a “certain course of action” would be taken, after the prosecution decided not to proceed with the earlier corruption charges.

Iswaran pleaded guilty and was convicted of five charges, with the other 30 charges taken into consideration.

He was convicted of four charges of obtaining valuable things as a public servant. He is also guilty of obstructing justice.

The five charges were:

1. Obtaining 2017 F1 tickets

In September 2017, Iswaran obtained 10 Green Room tickets to the 2017 F1 Grand Prix with a value of $42,265 from Mr Ong. Guests with Green Room tickets have access to all zones and the entertainment stages, an open bar with wine, beer and soft drinks, as well as a dedicated suite ambassador to look after their needs.

2. Obtaining flights and a luxury hotel stay in Doha

In December 2022, Iswaran took an outbound flight on Mr Ong’s private plane from Singapore to Doha worth about US$7,700 (about S$9,900). The court heard that the former minister took “urgent personal leave” to go on the trip.

Through Singapore GP, he also took a business class flight from Doha to Singapore with a value of $5,700. He stayed for one night at Four Seasons Hotel Doha, the value of which was $4,737.

3. Obstructing justice

Iswaran obstructed justice by paying $5,700 to Singapore GP to cover the cost of his business class ticket from Doha to Singapore. The flight was at the expense of Mr Ong through Singapore GP.

On or about May 17, 2023, CPIB came across a flight manifest on Mr Ong’s private jet while investigating a separate matter. “The next day, Ong spoke to the accused again by phone. The accused asked Ong to have Singapore GP bill him for the Singapore-Doha trip expenses, including the Doha-Singapore flight on Dec 11, 2022,” said Deputy Attorney-General (DAG) Tai Wei Shyong. Mr Ong agreed.

Arrangements were made for the payment and Iswaran later issued a cheque for the cost of the flight on May 25. DAG Tai said Iswaran had obstructed the course of justice as this made it less likely for him to be investigated by CPIB.

4. Obtaining 14 bottles of alcohol

In late 2021, Iswaran asked Mr Lum to help him source for whisky and red wine after sending him a screenshot of a bottle of Gordon & MacPhail Caol Ila whisky.

In January 2022, Mr Lum arranged for 14 bottles of alcohol to be delivered to Iswaran, who did not declare these to the Government.

Iswaran knew at the time that Mr Lum was involved in an MRT contract between Lum Chang Building Contractors and the Land Transport Authority (LTA).

• 2 bottles of Gordon & MacPhail Caol Ila whisky with a value of about $542.23
• 3 bottles of L’Evangile 2014 wine with a value of $394.20
• 3 bottles of Pauillac De Latour 2015 wine with a value of $186.31
• 3 bottles of Albert Bichot Domaine du Clos Frantin Grands Echezeaux Grand Cru 2015 wine with a value of $1,177.21
• 3 bottles of Pichon Lalande 2010 wine with a value of $955.80

5. Obtaining a Brompton T Line bicycle

In June 2022, Iswaran obtained a Brompton T Line bicycle worth about $7,907 from Mr Lum. T Line bicycles are the lightest bicycles made by the British brand.

Before June 13, 2022, Mr Lum had suggested that he would buy a foldable bike for Iswaran for his birthday. Iswaran received the bicycle and did not declare the gift to the Government.

The more senior the public servant, the more serious the offence, said Deputy Attorney-General Tai Wei Shyong, who led the prosecution team. Iswaran’s acts had a significant impact on the Government’s reputation and by the time of his resignation, he had been a minister for 12 years.

“The fact that he was a minister of such seniority and standing would have amplified the effect of the accused’s behaviour,” Mr Tai pointed out.

Whether Iswaran received the gifts in a passive or active manner ought to have a bearing on his sentence, Mr Tai said.

The facts showed that Iswaran was “more than a passive acceptor” of the gifts in question, the prosecutor said, highlighting Iswaran’s significant business relationships with Mr Ong and Mr Lum.

Mr Tai added that Iswaran did not declare any of the gifts, some of which he distributed to friends. The value and extent of personal gifts should also be a key sentencing factor, he argued.

The repeated taking of the gifts is itself considered an abuse of office, regardless of favour shown to others, Mr Tai said. Obtaining items while conducting official dealings with businessmen sends signals to the public or the giver that the receiver is open to patronage.

Friendship is neither a defence nor a mitigating factor to the charges under Section 165. He added: “The closer the social relationship, the more important it is for public servants to avoid taking gifts.”

Responding to the argument by Iswaran’s lawyer, Mr Tai said the harm contemplated by Section 165 offences refers to harm or potential damage to public interest, irrespective of whether the givers had suffered loss.

Iswaran’s lawyer, Mr Singh, said the items were given to Iswaran in the context of his friendship with Mr Ong and Mr Lum. There was no suggestion that any third party suffered any losses as a result of Iswaran’s offences under Section 165, he argued.

On the Green Room tickets, Mr Singh said they were always meant to be distributed without charge as part of a regular agreement for the benefit of the F1. Iswaran had given the tickets to people of diverse backgrounds, including young people, grassroots members, and people in social and charitable sectors. He returned to Singapore GP all the tickets that he was not able to distribute.

“There was no planning, premeditation or sophistication involved. It couldn’t have been. These were just gifts that were presented to him,” Mr Singh told the court.

Regarding the Doha trip, Iswaran did not request the flights nor the hotel stay, said Mr Singh. The chairman of the World Cup had invited Mr Ong to watch the finals in 2022, and Iswaran was invited on the trip, the lawyer added. Iswaran had considered the trip as an opportunity to learn how a city like Doha staged and organised a world event.

“Therefore, there was no loss, in so far as the private jet was concerned. That cost would have been incurred regardless, whether Iswaran had occupied that seat,” Mr Singh said.

He noted the prosecution had accepted there was nothing to suggest that the F1 contracts were structured to the disadvantage of the Government. As for Mr Lum’s company contracts from LTA, they were awarded before Iswaran became transport minister, and he had nothing to do with them.

The lawyer emphasised that Iswaran’s actions were never “about the money, or greed of money”.

Mr Tai said the former minister “disgorged late in the day”. Disgorgement is a remedy requiring a party who profits from illegal or wrongful acts to give up any profits he or she makes.

While to some extent, restitution goes towards showing remorse, such a move made voluntarily before the commencement of proceedings carries a higher mitigating value as it shows that the offender is genuinely sorry, he pointed out. If the sole motive of restitution is to obtain a lighter punishment, then it should have limited mitigating value.

He told the court: “Moreover, restitution serves to compensate victims’ losses. Disgorgement cannot restore any damage to the public interest.”

Countering this point, Iswaran’s lawyer, Mr Singh, argued that the disgorgement could not have been done any earlier. It was immediately after the prosecution informed the defence that it would be amending the two corruption charges that the offer of disgorgement was made.

He said: “We didn’t wait. It could not have been made earlier. As I explained, it would have impacted on the defence – not just the PCA (Prevention of Corruption Act) charges, but all the other charges, because it would have a prejudicial effect and would have coloured the view taken of those charges.”

The Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) said it had considered the challenges in proving the two corruption charges.

“In deciding whether to amend the charges, AGC considered the litigation risks involved in proving the Prevention of Corruption Act charges beyond a reasonable doubt at trial, given that there are two primary parties to the transactions, and both would have an interest in denying corruption in the transactions,” said a spokesman. “AGC also considered whether the amendment would lead to a fair and just outcome that is in line with the public interest.”

On Oct 3, Iswaran was sentenced to 12 months in jail, almost double the six to seven months the prosecution had sought. The defence had asked for no more than eight weeks’ jail.

Justice Vincent Hoong said what the prosecution and defence had asked for were “manifestly inadequate”.

Here are some key points of Justice Hoong’s judgment.

General deterrence a key consideration

Justice Hoong said general deterrence, aimed at setting an example for others who commit offences, should be the primary consideration in his sentencing decision.

“I agree with the prosecution that the higher the office held by the offender as a public servant, the higher his level of culpability,” the judge said.

As a minister and chairman of the F1 steering committee, Iswaran was tasked with overseeing high-level decisions and collaboration between government agencies and the Singapore GP as a national project.

Mr Ong, meanwhile, owned more than 90 per cent of the shares in Singapore GP and had a longstanding relationship with the Government and the Singapore GP, according to court documents.

The judge said Iswaran’s roles wielded influence in matters of great public interest, even though there was no evidence that the gifts had influenced decisions over F1 or its contracts.

“Such persons set the tone of public servants in conducting themselves in accordance with high standards of integrity and must be expected to avoid any perception that they are susceptible to influence to pecuniary benefits,” he said.

Trust in public institutions damaged

Justice Hoong said significant harm was caused to trust in the public office.

The mere perception that the receiver is under the influence of the giver, who is cultivating goodwill, is already harmful to trust in public institutions, he added.

Justice Hoong said he considered whether Iswaran was aware of the giver’s motive, which could be interpreted as motivated by a desire to cultivate goodwill or loyalty. “The decision to obtain a valuable item in such circumstances, where the offender knows of a close connection between the giver’s interest and his official functions, is a marker of a more culpable state of mind,” he said.

Iswaran’s public service and contributions to Singapore are, at best, a neutral factor given the need for deterrence, he added.

Regarding Iswaran voluntarily returning the benefits he had received, the judge said: “The harm done to the public interest, in the form of damage to trust and confidence in public institutions, is unlikely to be adequately remedied by these actions.”

Iswaran acted with deliberation

While Iswaran did not actively seek out the gifts, he cannot be described as “a mere passive acceptor”, Justice Hoong said.

In 2017, Iswaran had asked for 10 F1 Green Room tickets – each worth more than $4,200 – which grant access to a premium hospitality suite for guests to enjoy the F1 race. The court heard that Iswaran had been offered the complimentary tickets on the urging of Mr Ong.

As a mitigating factor, the defence argued that Iswaran did not sell the tickets issued by Mr Ong and instead distributed them to family and friends.

But the argument ignores the fact that the tickets would have otherwise been distributed for free by Singapore GP as the promoter of the event, Justice Hoong said.

In another sign of deliberation, Iswaran had taken urgent personal leave for the trip to Doha with Mr Ong, allowing him to enjoy an all-expenses-paid trip with only four days’ prior notice, the judge said.

According to court documents, Iswaran’s hotel stay and travel expenses – valued at $20,848.03 in total – were covered, including a flight on Mr Ong’s private jet from Singapore to Doha, a return business class flight to Singapore and a Doha hotel stay.

When Iswaran became aware that the CPIB was investigating Mr Ong’s associates, it was Iswaran who requested that Mr Ong send him the bill for his expenses linked to the Doha trip, Justice Hoong said.

“The accused’s actions stemmed from his personal perceived interest of avoiding the CPIB’s investigations into gifts received by him,” the judge said, adding that doing so marked “a grave culpability-increasing factor”.

Not remorseful

The remaining 30 charges taken into consideration reveal the scale and repetition of Iswaran’s offending over a significant period of time, increasing his culpability, Justice Hoong said.

The former minister expressed remorse only at a late stage of the proceedings. He pleaded guilty to five offences on Sept 24, the first day of what was supposed to be his criminal trial, after months of saying he would contest the case to clear his name.

Justice Hoong said: “The accused had simultaneously made public statements rejecting the allegations in the charges as false and asserting his innocence.”

Citing Iswaran’s letter to then Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the judge noted: “(Iswaran) stated that he rejected the charges and was innocent, and expressed his strong belief that he would be acquitted.”

Justice Hoong added: “Thus, I have considerable difficulty accepting that these acts were indicative of the accused’s remorse and desire to make reparations.”

On Oct 4, Ong was charged with abetting a public servant in obtaining gifts and with abetting the obstruction of justice.

According to court documents, Ong, 78, allegedly instigated Iswaran to obtain a valuable item in December 2022 by offering him a trip from Singapore to Doha. The flight on Ong’s private plane was valued at US$7,700.

Ong also arranged a one-night stay in Four Seasons Hotel Doha with a value of $4,737.63; and a business class flight from Doha to Singapore, valued at $5,700, for Iswaran.

For this, Ong was charged with one count of abetment under Section 165, which makes it an offence for a public servant to accept anything of value from any person with whom he is involved in an official capacity without payment or with inadequate payment.

The prosecution will not be tendering charges against Mr Lum, said the AGC.

Iswaran’s lawyer has asked for the jail sentence to commence on Oct 7 to review the judge’s grounds for sentencing and to take instructions from his client.

Meanwhile, Ong’s lawyer asked for a six-week adjournment, saying he needed time to take instructions from his client. The case was adjourned to Nov 15.