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Ang Mo Kio Town Council’s ex-general manager charged with corruption

SINGAPORE — The former general manager of Ang Mo Kio Town Council was charged in court on Wednesday (March 14), suspected of corruptly receiving some S$107,000 in dealings with the directors of two building and repair companies.

Wong Chee Meng, the former general manager of Ang Mo Kio Town Council, faces 55 counts of the corruption offence. Photo: Najeer Yusof/TODAY

Wong Chee Meng, the former general manager of Ang Mo Kio Town Council, faces 55 counts of the corruption offence. Photo: Najeer Yusof/TODAY

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SINGAPORE — The former general manager of Ang Mo Kio Town Council was charged in court on Wednesday (March 14), suspected of corruptly receiving some S$107,000 in dealings with the directors of two building and repair companies. 

Various inducements were offered to allegedly advance the business interests of the firms with the town council.

Wong Chee Meng, 58, also known as Victor Wong, faces 55 counts of corruption.

The penalty is a maximum jail term of seven years - two years more than the highest possible for a typical corruption charge as the transactions involved a public body - and/or a fine of up to S$100,000 per charge. 

Above: Chia Sin Lan leaves the State Courts on Mar 14. Photo: Najeer Yusof/ TODAY

He was hauled to court together with Chia Sin Lan, 62, director of 19-ANC Enterprise and 19-NS2 Enterprise, the two companies involved in the case. Both firms deal with general building, repairs and redecoration works.

Wong was an employee of CPG Facilities Management, the managing agent of the town council that serves the Ang Mo Kio public housing estate. He is alleged to have received bribes from Chia totalling more than S$30,000, which were sent to Wong’s mistress Xu Hongmei in the form of overseas remittances.

The activities purportedly took place on three occasions between June 2015 and May 2016. 

Between March and August 2016, Chia’s company 19-ANC Enterprise is said to have paid more than S$8,200 in salary to Wong’s daughter-in-law, Ms Le Thi Hien, who got her job at another firm because of the two men’s dealings with each other. 

Wong also allegedly accepted bribes in the form of entertainment expenses on at least 29 occasions. Nearly S$45,000 was shelled out at various karaoke clubs in 2015. Other forms of gratification included hotel accommodations, as well as meals at various restaurants. 

In another instance, Chia is said to have conspired with Yip Fong Yin — herself a project director with 19-ANC and a director at 19-NS2 — to offer bribes to Wong in the form of discounts amounting to S$13,500 for a car that Wong bought. 

Apart from the car discount, Chia faces 54 other counts of offering bribes to Wong. 

In court on Thursday, 19-ANC Enterprise and 19-NS2 Enterprise were also charged with corruption. The companies are accused of engaging in a criminal conspiracy with Chia, Yip, and one Tay Eng Chuan to bribe Wong between 2014 and 2016 in order to advance their business interests.

Chia, represented by Mr Michael Loh, and Wong, represented by Mr Tang Shangwei, will be back in court on April 11. They were offered bail of S$100,000 each. The court was told on Wednesday that the duo intended to challenge all the charges. 

Previously, The Straits Times reported that Wong was asked to go on leave by CPG Facilities Management in September 2016 after the town council received a complaint about him. He was removed from his post in November that year, and was assisting the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau with its investigations. 

Wong began working at the town council as a property manager, before he was promoted to general manager in 2013.

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