SINGAPORE: A 46-year-old former deputy group director with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) pleaded guilty on Thursday (Aug 26) to seven charges of taking S$1.24 million in bribes in the form of loans to advance the business interests of contractors and subcontractors.
Henry Foo Yung Thye – who appeared in court on Thursday wearing a white polo T-shirt – was previously a deputy group director overseeing the construction of the Thomson-East Coast and Cross Island lines for the LTA.
Twenty-nine other charges were taken into consideration for his sentencing.
The prosecution noted the accused had received a total of S$1.24 million in corrupt gratification. Of this amount, Foo repaid S$83,750, leaving a balance of S$1,156,250.
Court documents showed that the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) had in October 2018 received an anonymous complaint that Foo had been soliciting loans from subcontractors involved with projects under his charge.
CPIB also received further information that Foo had requested for financial help from the director of China Railway Tunnel Group to pay off his outstanding personal debts.
CPIB’s investigations revealed that Foo had corruptly obtained bribes in the form of loans from contractors and subcontractors to advance their business interests with LTA.
In total, these companies had about S$815 million worth of contracts with LTA which Foo oversaw.
Foo felt beholden to these parties because of the money he had received, and sought to advance their business interests by providing assistance to them, the prosecution argued.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Victoria Ting sought a jail term of six years and three months for Foo, describing his case as “the most significant case of public sector corruption” in recent times, pointing to the number of givers and vendor companies implicated, as well as the amounts given.
Foo’s culpability was enhanced by his actively and repeatedly seeking monetary gratification, said the prosecutor.
She noted that most, if not all, of the contractors had initially rejected Foo’s requests, agreeing only after he made repeated subsequent demands.
The prosecutor also pointed to Foo’s abuse of power, noting his positions as chairman of the LTA’s tender evaluation committee and member of the tender steering committee, as well as his role as project director for various projects.
Foo had given advice as well as overtly disclosed confidential information to companies, said Ms Ting, adding that his acts had damaged LTA’s credibility. This could lead to third-party companies being prejudiced against LTA, as well as public concern over the soundness of projects undertaken by the agency, she added.