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Former BSI employee fined, jailed 18 weeks in 1MDB-linked case

SINGAPORE — Former senior private banker Yak Yew Chee was sentenced to 18 weeks’ jail and fined S$24,000 on Friday (Nov 11) for forgery and for failing to disclose information on suspicious transactions — the first person to be sentenced here following a probe into fund flows from Singapore linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

Yak Yew Chee leaving the State Courts on Oct 10, 2016. TODAY file photo

Yak Yew Chee leaving the State Courts on Oct 10, 2016. TODAY file photo

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SINGAPORE — Former senior private banker Yak Yew Chee was sentenced to 18 weeks’ jail and fined S$24,000 on Friday (Nov 11) for forgery and for failing to disclose information on suspicious transactions — the first person to be sentenced here following a probe into fund flows from Singapore linked to 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB).

The 57-year-old was the relationship manager of Malaysian tycoon Low Taek Jho and his father. Mr Low, also known as Jho Low, has been suspected of siphoning billions of dollars from the Malaysian state fund.

Yak, previously a managing director with BSI Singapore, on Friday pleaded guilty to two counts of forgery and another two counts of not reporting suspicious transactions when he knew they could constitute criminal conduct. Another three charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.

The court heard that Yak was also the relationship manager to other entities that, between 2011 and 2014, engaged the bank’s services to structure pass-through transactions and to layer substantial sums of monies through intermediary fund management companies.

Investigations revealed that Mr Low was involved in and exerted “great influence” over such pass-through transactions. There were several phone discussions by Mr Low, Yak and former BSI wealth planner Yeo Jiawei to facilitate these transactions, with Yeo being “intimately involved” in structuring them, the prosecutor said.

Yak significantly benefited from these transactions through the bonuses that were paid to him, the court heard.

Between October and November 2012, monies from 1MDB Energy (Langat) passed through seven entities, all in varying amounts, before ending up in Selune Ltd’s bank account with Rothschild Bank AG in Switzerland on Nov 7.

It started with Aabar Investments PJS Limited receiving a remittance of about US$790 million (S$1.1 billion) from 1MDB Energy on Oct 23, 2012. Some of the monies were transferred to entities where the beneficial owner was Tan Kim Loong, Mr Low’s close associate.

A month later, Mr Low gave Yak two draft reference letters to be sent to the chief executive of Rothschild Trust (Schweiz) AG, after the bank raised queries over a transfer of US$110 million to Selune Ltd’s bank account.

Yak signed on the letter even though he knew he was not authorised to do so and had not cleared it with the bank’s legal team.

He also knew the contents of the letter omitted the fact that the monies transferred by Mr Low’s father came from Mr Low, and was intended to conceal the source of the monies. 

Given that the transactions also involved a “suspicious circular movement of funds which made no logical sense”, Yak should have “reasonable grounds” to suspect that two transactions — US$153 million from Good Star account to Abu Dhabi-Kuwait-Malaysia Investment Corporation and US$110 million from Mr Low’s account to Selune Ltd — directly represented proceeds of an act that may “constitute criminal conduct”.

Yak failed to disclose such information to a suspicious-transaction reporting officer.

Likewise, on Feb 18, 2014, Mr Low asked for a reference letter to BNP Paribas (Suisse) SA. Again, Yak prepared and signed on the letter and also got his subordinate Yvonne Seah to co-sign the letter even though he was not authorised to do so.

The prosecution noted that Yak’s offences warranted a deterring sentence as they affect the delivery of financial services. His actions had, to some extent, brought disrepute to Singapore’s financial system.

In mitigation, Yak’s lawyer Lee Teck Leng said that his client was genuinely remorseful and had fallen short of the standards expected from bankers here.

Mr Lee added that his client would voluntarily disgorge S$7.5 million among the monies seized from him, even though the earnings were not directly connected to the charges he faced.

Separately, Yeo, 33, continued to distance himself from Mr Low during the ninth day of his trial on Friday. 

He is facing trial for perverting the course of justice by allegedly interfering with witnesses central to investigations. He also faces another seven charges of cheating, forgery and money-laundering, which will be dealt with in April next year.

He told the court that the photo of him taking a private jet with Mr Low came about after the latter could not make it for a meeting with him at the very last minute.

Yak had then asked Yeo to join them on Mr Low’s private jet to discuss business matters while flying to Hong Kong.

Yeo also claimed that he attended the boxing match with Mr Low after Yak told him there was an extra ticket.

The trial for Yeo continues on Wednesday (Nov 16).

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