Former managing director of bankrupt luxury jet firm charged with embezzling over $11 million
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SINGAPORE - A former managing director of failed luxury jet operator Zetta Jet was on Wednesday charged in court with embezzling more than $11 million from the company.
Geoffrey Owen Cassidy faces 34 charges including cheating, criminal breach of trust by misappropriation, and using the benefits of criminal conduct.
According to a police statement on Oct 12, the 34-year-old Australian was a managing director at Zetta Jet between 2015 and 2017.
He was also a director at aircraft management and consulting company Asia Aviation Company from 2009 to 2017.
He is said to have siphoned monies from Zetta Jet between 2016 and 2017.
Many of his charges involve large sums of money, with one accusing Cassidy of misappropriating over US$2.6 million ($3.74 million) from the company in September 2016.
He also allegedly abetted the finance manager of Zetta Jet to post an entry of US$1.35 million in the company's financial records, which falsely showed that Cassidy had made payment to a consulting firm on the company's behalf.
He is said to have used more than $1.4 million for property-related expenditures.
Cassidy also faces a cheating charge, and has been accused of duping aircraft repair and servicing company AirLNG into delivering more than US$400,000 on five occasions between April 25, 2014 and May 27, 2015.
Former director of Zetta Jet, June Tang Kim Choo, was also charged in court on Wednesday in relation to the case.
She allegedly failed to use reasonable diligence in the discharge of her duties, by authorising payments of more than $5 million without checking whether they were for the company's purposes.
She held the post at the firm from 2015 to 2017.
Cassidy is out on $300,000 bail and will return to court in November.
Zetta Jet operated for two years as one of the fastest growing charter operators in the Asia-Pacific region before going bankrupt in late 2017.
Its collapse came amid charges of corruption and mismanagement that raised questions about its services.
