Ex-PAP branch treasurer jailed for embezzling more than
S$78k
SINGAPORE: As treasurer for the People’s Action Party
(PAP) Aljunied-Kembangan branch since 2004, it was Peter Lee Yoke
Leong’s job to sort out the division’s bank accounts.
But the 43-year-old, now unemployed, decided to dip his hand into
the branch’s coffers - an act that landed him in jail for eight
months on Tuesday.
According to court documents, the branch was closed after the 2006
General Election and merged with the PAP Kampong Ubi branch, to
form the PAP Kampong Ubi-Kembangan office.
Lee - one of the authorised signatories of the old branch’s current
account with DBS Bank - was then tasked to close the account and
transfer the residual funds to the account of the new office.
On Jan 2, 2007, he prepared a cheque for S$50,000 and cashed it at
a DBS Bank branch at Raffles Place. But instead of banking the
money into the Kampong Ubi-Kembangan account, he pocketed the
cash.
Four months later, Lee withdrew another S$28,461.46 from the same
account. In all, the former grassroots leader - who used to earn
S$18,000 a month in a broking firm until he was retrenched in March
2007 - pocketed S$78,461.46.
Yesterday, he was jailed after pleading guilty to embezzling the
cash between February 2 and June 27, 2007.
His crime was uncovered when the executive director of the PAP
headquarters, Lau Ping Sum, lodged a police report on Aug 1 when
officials noticed a discrepancy in the branch accounts.
Officers from the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) arrested Mr
Lee days later.
Lawyer Mr Noor Mohamed Marican pleaded for the court to be lenient
to his client, a first time offender and father of two. Mr Noor
also produced testimonials from Kampong Ubi-Kembangan Citizens’
Consultative Committee (CCC) members, who attested to Mr Lee’s
contributions to the ward.
District Judge Liew Thiam Leng noted that while Lee has paid back
the money he misappropriated, the sum was nonetheless sizeable.
Hence, a lengthy custodial sentence was necessary, especially as
Lee had been holding a position of trust.
For criminal breach of trust, he could have been jailed for up to
three years and/or fined. - TODAY/ra
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