Singapore charges bunkering company for cheating

On 16 November 2017, the bunkering company, Vermont UM Bunkering Pte Ltd, and three of its staff have been charged for cheating and criminal breach of trust offences, Singapore’s Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) announced.

Namely, two of Vermont Bunkering’s directors (Poh Fu Tek and Koh Seng Lee) and one former bunker manager (Lee Kok Leong) were charged for above offences. Thus, through these alleged fraudulent transactions, Vermont Bunkering had induced its customers to make excess payments totaling over US$8 million, CPIB notes in its announcement.

Specifically, the company has been charged for 150 counts of engaging in a conspiracy to cheat customers by delivering invoices indicating a higher quantity of marine fuel had been delivered when in fact a lower quantity was delivered.

Furthermore, Vermont Bunkering was accused of one count of engaging in a conspiracy to commit criminal breach of trust by dishonestly misappropriating approximately 250 metric tons of marine fuel oil.

Additionally, Vermont Bunkering and Poh Fu Tek will each be charged with 18 counts of abetment by engaging in a conspiracy to disguise property representing benefits from criminal conduct. This was achieved by using invoices falsely purporting that various quantities of fuel oil had been sold to Vermont Bunkering, CPIB mentioned.

As far as Lee Kok Leong, together with Lee Peck Yong and Loh Cheok San, are concerned, each were charged in court on 10 October 2017 with one count of criminal conspiracy to commit cheating by deceiving Vermont Bunkering into paying them even larger commissions than the sum being used to facilitate the illegal marine fuel oil buy-back transactions. As a result, Vermont Bunkering was dishonestly induced to pay a larger sum for the marine fuel, according to CPIB.

    “CPIB had worked with the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) on this case and received valuable assistance from them. Singapore adopts a zero tolerance approach towards corruption and criminal activities. The CPIB takes a serious view of any corrupt and criminal practices, and will not hesitate to take action against any party involved in such acts,” CPIB emphasizes.