Former BP manager, businessman found guilty of corruption
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Clarence Chang Peng Hong (left) received more than $5 million in bribes from Koh Seng Lee, in exchange for advancing the interests of Koh's company with BP Singapore, where Chang was a manager.
ST PHOTOS: WONG KWAI CHOW
Cara Wong
A former manager at oil giant BP was found guilty yesterday of receiving US$3.95 million (S$5.5 million) in bribes from a businessman, who was also convicted.
Clarence Chang Peng Hong, 55, had accepted bribes from businessman Koh Seng Lee on 19 occasions between July 2006 and July 2010, in exchange for advancing the business interests of Koh's company with BP, a district judge ruled.
Koh, 58, had separately also corruptly agreed to pay $500,000 to a pre-school - MindChamps PreSchool @ City Square - where Chang's wife is a director.
Chang and Koh were each found guilty yesterday of 20 corruption charges, following a trial spanning two years.
Earlier in the trial, the court heard that Koh had set up a marine fuel trading company, Pacific Prime Trading (PPT), at Chang's suggestion.
The two had a "mutual understanding" from the start, said Deputy Public Prosecutors Jiang Ke-Yue and Loh Hui-Min, that Chang would use his position in BP Singapore to advance PPT's interest, in return for a "share" of PPT's profits.
The prosecutors said that "from the very outset, Koh was beholden to Chang".
"Over time, the aforesaid arrangement became further entrenched as PPT's business with BP Singapore flourished," said the prosecutors.
They also argued that Koh knew that Chang had the power to "make or break" PPT, and felt compelled to accede to Chang's requests for payments.
Chang was also "beholden to place PPT's interests above that of his principal, BP Singapore", as he stood to prosper with PPT, said the prosecutors.
During the trial, defence counsel for the two men argued that the fund transfers between the two were for joint investments in property and in MindChamps, and were wholly unrelated to PPT's business with BP Singapore.
However, District Judge Ong Chin Rhu said in court yesterday that the accounts of joint investments were an afterthought.
It was "telling" that both Chang's and Koh's statements pertaining to these joint investments contained "glaring contradictions and inconsistencies", said the judge.
The duo are out on bail of $200,000 each, and will be back in court on Sept 7 for their sentencing.
For each charge of corruption, Koh and Chang can be jailed for up to five years and fined up to $100,000.
