Pre-trial conference for Ong Beng Seng case rescheduled to July 28

SINGAPORE: The pre-trial conference for property tycoon and hotelier Ong Beng Seng has been rescheduled to Monday next week (Jul 28).

Mr Ong had been due to plead guilty on Apr 2 in connection with the corruption case involving former transport minister S Iswaran, but he was given more time to obtain medical records from his doctors.

In February, it was reported that he was suffering from multiple myeloma, a rare cancer that develops in the plasma cells of a person’s bone marrow, and had been undergoing chemotherapy for the illness.

The date for Mr Ong to plead guilty was then moved to July 3, following a Jun 10 pre-trial conference.

The businessman, who is based in Singapore, made his fortune as a hotelier and is the managing director of Hotel Properties Limited. As of late 2022, he and his wife, Christina Ong, had an estimated net worth of S$1.75 billion and were listed as the 24th richest people in Singapore.

He is best known for his part in bringing Formula 1 to Singapore. As a personal friend of F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, he helped seal the deal in 2007 that brought the race to Singapore. F1 launched in the city-state in 2008. Former transport minister S Iswaran was, at the time, junior trade minister, and had been involved in negotiations with parties, including Mr Ong’s company, Hotel Properties Limited (HPL), and Mr Ecclestone.

In 2023, however, Mr Ong was arrested in connection with the scandal involving Iswaran, who was slapped with multiple charges after receiving gifts worth hundreds of thousands of dollars from two businessmen, including Mr Ong.

On Oct 4, 2024, Mr Ong was charged in the Singapore District Court with one offence under Section 165 of the Penal Code and another offence under Section 204A of the Penal Code.

HPL, which Mr Ong founded and where he had served as managing director, said earlier this year in a Singapore Exchange (SGX) announcement that he would enter a guilty plea to the charge of obstruction of justice. The other charge would be taken into consideration for sentencing.

HPL announced on Apr 29 that Mr Ong would step down as managing director “to devote more time to manage his medical conditions.”

Mr Ong’s pre-trial conference had originally been set for this Wednesday (Jul 23) but was scheduled for a later date upon request, although who made the request is not indicated in the court system. /TISG

Read also: Property tycoon and hotelier Ong Beng Seng to step down as HPL managing director on April 29 to devote more time to cancer treatment