Two directors of embattled firm Autobahn Rent A Car charged in court over allegations of forgery
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Autobahn Rent A Car had announced on Jan 6 it had suspended its operations “due to operational constraints and insurance cancellation”.
PHOTO: ST FILE
- Autobahn Rent A Car's shareholders, Tan Boon Kee and Sanjay Kumar Rai, face forgery charges related to a false Komoco Motors receipt.
- The forged document falsely claimed Hamilton Autohub paid for 10 Hyundai Kona Hybrid cars, allegedly intended to deceive.
- Autobahn, owing creditors $305.9 million, suspended Shariot and had its creditor protection application dismissed.
AI generated
SINGAPORE – The two shareholders of Autobahn Rent A Car, whose group of companies owe creditors over $300 million, have been charged in court over allegations that they forged documents purportedly from Komoco Motors.
On Jan 30, Tan Boon Kee and Sanjay Kumar Rai, both 49, were each handed one charge of abetting by engaging in a conspiracy to commit forgery for the purpose of cheating.
The pair, who are also the directors of the vehicle leasing group, are said to have instructed a staff member to fraudulently make a false “official receipt” dated Nov 6, 2025, bearing the letterhead of Komoco Motors.
The document falsely stated that Komoco had sold and received full payment from Hamilton Autohub for 10 Hyundai Kona Hybrid vehicles.
Komoco is the distributor of Hyundai cars, and Hamilton Autohub is one of the companies where Tan and Sanjay are directors and shareholders.
According to the court documents, the two directors allegedly forged the receipt with the intention of passing it off as a genuine one from Komoco.
Tan and Sanjay, who are currently remanded, had appeared in court via video link in handcuffs. They are represented by lawyer Clarence Lun of Fervent Chambers.
A police prosecutor applied for the two men to be remanded in Changi Prison for one week to allow the authorities to conduct raids and secure evidence, and to prevent tampering of evidence.
Both men objected to the application, saying they have already cooperated with investigations.
Sanjay said: “We have done no wrong.”
Mr Lun added that his clients had been with the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) for 36 hours, and their evidence has already been secured.
The lawyer said his clients could turn up at CAD from 9am to 5pm daily and remand was not necessary.
In response, the police prosecutor said custody was still required to ensure that investigations are not compromised.
“The full extent of the conspiracy has yet to be discovered, and there may be other possible accomplices that we need to establish,” he said.
District Judge Brenda Tan granted the prosecution’s application. Their next court mention will be on Feb 6.
Autobahn Rent A Car, which runs car-sharing service Shariot, announced on Jan 6 it had suspended its operations
Shariot and 17 related firms, including Autobahn Rent A Car, had applied to the High Court in December 2025 for a six-month moratorium to halt creditor actions, including the repossession of assets, while they work out a proposed scheme of arrangement.
A scheme of arrangement is a court-supervised process that enables financially distressed companies to negotiate with creditors to restructure their debts and continue operating.
Collectively, Autobahn and its group of related companies have 1,700 vehicles, mainly rented out for ride-hailing services.
According to earlier reports, the companies collectively owed more than $300 million
The High Court on Dec 26, 2025, dismissed the company’s application for temporary protection from creditors.
Autobahn Rent A Car had planned to appeal for protection against creditors’ recovery action but the appeal was dropped in January.
The firm subsequently notified its creditors about the withdrawal of the appeal.
