Ex-LTA Director Foo Yung Thye Faces Jailtime For Taking $1.24M In Bribes
Update (2 Sep): Henry Foo Yung Thye was sentenced to 5.5 years’ jail and ordered to pay $1,156,250, according to The Straits Times (ST).
This monetary penalty is the amount he hadn’t returned yet.
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Gambling is an addictive pastime that can consume one’s life if it gets out of hand.
Ex-Land Transport Authority (LTA) director Henry Foo Yung Thye probably knows that all too well after landing himself in hot soup for alleged financial corruption.
He now faces jail time for accepting bribes totalling $1.24 million to pay off his gambling debts.
Foo reportedly solicited these bribes in the form of loans between 2014 and 2019.
The prosecution has described this as the largest case of public sector corruption in recent times.
Foo Yung Thye was ex-LTA director of 2 MRT lines
According to The Straits Times (ST), Foo was the director of the Thomson-East Coast and Cross Island Lines from July 2017 to September 2019.
In his time there, he oversaw the construction of MRT stations and tunnels such as Havelock, Stevens, Great World, Napier, and Orchard stations.
He was also among the officials who collectively evaluated LTA contracts and subcontracts for the upcoming Thomson-East Coast and Cross Island Lines.
Used position of power to solicit bribes from contractors
Channel NewsAsia (CNA) reported that Foo would use his influence as a bargaining chip for his loan requests. Although loaners would initially reject his proposal, they would eventually give in as to not complicate their interests with LTA.
The individuals that the ex-LTA director sought loans from allegedly include the directors of:
- China Railway Tunnel Group (Singapore)
- Tritech Engineering & Testing
- MEPT Engineering
- Tiong Seng Contractors
Pay Teow Heng, director of Tiong Seng Contractors, provided the largest loan sum in June 2017. The amount is believed to be $200,000.
Foo would also share confidential information regarding LTA tenders and promised to support these firms in their bids for tenders.
The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) eventually received an anonymous complaint against Foo in 2018, which compelled them to launch investigations.
They later found that the gratification received from Foo were from contractors and sub-contractors that had $815 million worth of contracts with LTA.
In addition to the contractors, TODAY added that Foo had cheated several colleagues into loaning him roughly $726,500 between 2008 and 2019. He subsequently resigned from the statutory board.
Allegedly suffers from gambling disorder
Speaking in court, Foo’s lawyer apparently said that his client is suffering from a pathological gambling disorder, which he attributed for the offences.
Calling this the “largest case of public sector corruption” in recent times, DPP Victoria Ting sought a jail sentence of at least 6 years and 3 months.
Foo’s lawyer, meanwhile, asked for a shorter sentence of 3 years and 10 months, noted TODAY. Amidst the discussion, the prosecutor urged the court to impose a default jail sentence for a minimum of 2 years.
Foo has since made restitution of $83,750 while leaving a balance of $1,156,250.
The maximum jail term is upped to 7 years from 5 since it relates to a matter or contracts with the Government or public body.
Sentenced to 5.5 years’ jail
According to ST, Foo was sentenced to 5.5 years’ jail and ordered to pay $1,156,250 on Thursday (2 Sep).
He had pleaded guilty to 7 counts of corruption and another 29 charges were taken into consideration.
This included cheating, as he tricked colleagues into loaning him $726,500.
Gamble within your means
While the thrill of gambling can be addictive, one must always practise restraint and gamble within our means.
Once you’re implicating others in your own desires, that’s when issues may arise and quickly engulf your reality.
It’s disappointing to hear of corruption in the higher echelons of the public sector. We hope Foo will learn from this incident.
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Featured image adapted from The Business Times on Twitter.
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