Global head at Standard Chartered Bank fined $2,000 for drink driving

Cristian Alexander Jonsson was caught driving along Dempsey Road with 54 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath. ST PHOTO: WONG KWAI CHOW

SINGAPORE - A global head at Standard Chartered Bank downed about seven glasses of wine before getting behind the wheel of his car.

Shortly after midnight on Sept 5, Cristian Alexander Jonsson, 48, was caught driving along Dempsey Road with 54 microgrammes of alcohol in 100ml of breath.

The prescribed limit is 35 microgrammes in 100ml of breath.

The Swede, who is a Singapore permanent resident, was fined $2,000 on Thursday (Sept 12) after pleading guilty to a drink driving charge.

Jonsson was also disqualified from driving all classes of vehicles for 18 months.

His LinkedIn page states that he heads the capital structuring distribution group and loan syndications at the bank.

The court heard that Jonsson went to Candlenut restaurant in Dempsey Road at around 8.20pm on Sept 4 and consumed the alcoholic drinks.

He stopped drinking around midnight.

He then drove his car to go to another carpark when he was stopped for checks.

Jonsson was later arrested after failing a breathalyser test.

The Swede, who was unrepresented in court on Thursday, told District Judge Lorraine Ho that he knew that he did "something wrong" and apologised for his actions.

Responding to queries from The Straits Times, Standard Chartered Bank said: "We will review the matter in line with our internal policies and procedures. It is inappropriate for us to comment further."

First-time offenders convicted of drink driving can be jailed for up to six months or fined up to $5,000.

Repeat offenders can be jailed for up to a year and fined up to $10,000.

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