SINGAPORE — Two former employees of a Singapore-based defence contracting firm look set to be extradited to the United States, where they are wanted for their roles in a high-profile bribery scandal surrounding the US Navy.

This comes after a State Court judge on Wednesday (Sept 21) gave the green light for the extradition of Neil Peterson and Raja Maslindah Raja Shamsad, who were respectively vice-president (global operations) and general manager (Singapore, Australia and the Pacific Isles) at Glenn Defense Marine Asia (GDMA).

The two will be remanded in prison until Law Minister K Shanmugam issues a warrant for their surrender to the US.

There will be a 15-day period before they are surrendered, and they have the option of reviewing the court’s decision.

Over in the US, they have been accused of cheating the navy of more than US$30 million (more than S$41 million) in an elaborate scheme involving fraudulent invoices, contract bid-rigging, and fictitious port authorities with inflated port tariffs that they invented.

In written submissions tendered during the court hearing on Wednesday, Deputy Senior State Counsel Luke Tang said that evidence exists to prove the case, including forged documents, business records and email correspondence agreeing to cheat the US Navy.

The court first heard from the Law Minister about the extradition request from the US on July 19 this year, and issued an apprehension warrant for the pair the following week.

During a Sept 7 hearing, Peterson’s lawyers Hamidul Haq and Thong Chee Kun, and Maslindah’s lawyer Anand Nalachandran, said that their clients would cooperate with the authorities on the extradition.

GDMA — owned by Malaysian businessman Leonard Glenn Francis — is a multinational firm headquartered in Singapore, with offices around the region. For more than 25 years, it managed bids for marine husbandry services during the US Navy’s port visits.

Peterson, 38, a permanent resident here, faces six charges of conspiring to defraud, using electronic or wire communication to obtain money and property fraudulently, and submitting false claims to the US government.

Maslindah, a 43-year-old Singaporean, has been slapped with seven similar charges.

Around June 2011, the US Navy struck a deal with GDMA for three regional contracts: the company would provide exclusive husbanding services for US ships and submarines at ports in South-east Asia, Australia and the Pacific Isles, and East Asia.

Before arriving at each port, a US Navy ship would send GDMA a list of supplies and services required. An invoice would be submitted and the ship would then issue a cheque in payment.

However, instead of submitting competitive quotes for these supplies and services, GDMA allegedly fabricated quotations, such that the firm appeared as the lowest bidder. It would then inflate the charges that would be submitted to the US Navy.

Among other things, Peterson allegedly created a shell company and submitted an inflated quotation for tug boats in 2012. A lower-cost quotation from a competitor was deliberately kept out of sight, and the US Navy ended up accepting the shell company’s quotation.

Francis — better known as Fat Leonard within the business circuit — admitted in January last year to his role in the scandal, where he provided navy officials with prostitutes, hotel stays and cash in exchange for contracts and tip-offs. He informed investigators about the roles Peterson and Maslindah played in the conspiracy.