S’pore company, director allegedly involved in possessing over $2.2m in criminal proceeds

SINGAPORE – A Singapore company engaged in multiple different activities and its director are accused of being involved in the possession of more than $2.2 million in alleged criminal proceeds just five months after its incorporation.

On Monday, Ambite, which was incorporated on Feb 3, 2021, was charged with one count of an offence under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act.

It is accused of having US$1,676,087.29 (S$2.27 million) in its bank account on July 29, 2021 – a sum that, according to court documents, may be reasonably suspected to be benefits from criminal conduct.

The company, which a search of the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority’s records showed is involved in project management and the wholesale trade of a variety of goods, also allegedly failed to account satisfactorily for how it came by the sum of money.

Apart from facing a charge of the alleged offence happening under him, Ambite director Alson Tong Shao Tian, 35, faces five other charges.

He is accused of failing to exercise reasonable diligence in the discharge of his duties as a director by not supervising the transactions in the company’s bank account from May 11 to July 29, 2021.

Some time between Aug 18 and Aug 24, 2021, he was also alleged to have intentionally obstructed the course of justice by deleting the messages in a WhatsApp chat between him and a Kuznetsov Pavel, pertaining to his decision to keep the company’s bank account open.

This happened before the WhatsApp chat logs were provided by him to the authorities investigating the bank account, and was allegedly done to conceal the extent of his involvement in keeping the account open.

Tong also allegedly lied to a police officer around Aug 24, 2021, that he had attempted to close the bank account but was unable to do so.

He also faces two charges of voluntarily causing hurt, having on June 22, 2022, allegedly choked a man outside a club at level six of Parklane Shopping Centre and punching another man multiple times in his face in a toilet on the same floor.

Tong’s next court date is Aug 31, while the company’s is Oct 23.

If convicted of the charge under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act, Ambite can be fined up to $300,000.

Tong can be fined up to $150,000, jailed for up to three years, or both, if he is convicted of the related offence.

He can fined up to $5,000 or jailed for up to 12 months if he is convicted of failing to exercise reasonable diligence in the discharge of his duties as a director.

If he is convicted of intentionally obstructing the course of justice, he can be jailed for up to seven years, fined, or both.

Tong can be jailed for up to six months, fined up to $5,000, or both, if he is convicted of furnishing to a public servant information that he knew to be false.

For each charge of voluntarily causing hurt, he can be jailed for up to three years, fined up to $5,000, or both.