*Correction note: We apologise for giving the impression in an earlier version of this article that F1 Auto Cars and its owners Mark Ho and Michael Ho were the subject of police investigations in connection with the billion dollar money-laundering case. That is incorrect. They are not the subject of investigations or under probe by the police. We also apologise for the error and the distress and embarrassment that this has caused to F1 Auto Cars, Mark Ho and Michael Ho. 

A POLICE probe into the S$1 billion money-laundering case has extended to the auto dealing sector, with at least one player said to have been questioned by the authorities.

An industry veteran, who spoke to The Business Times (BT) on condition of anonymity, said he had heard a dealer was interviewed by the police.

The Commercial Affairs Department, the police’s white-collar crime-busting unit, in August seized S$1 billion in cash and assets from a group of foreign nationals as part of Singapore’s largest anti-money laundering blitz. Ten foreigners have since been charged.

Among the items confiscated were 50 vehicles, including several high-end cars or supercars.

One of these was a fiery-red Ferrari, seized from the residence of Su Baolin when he was arrested.

The licence plate of the vehicle bears the name of a particular car dealer. BT called the auto dealer, but was told that the owners were “not in town”.

There is no indication that it was this dealer that was questioned. The car dealer’s website describes the business as a premium retailer of luxury and supercar brands, such as Mercedes-Benz, Ferrari, Porsche, Bentley and Rolls-Royce.

The president of the Singapore Vehicle Traders Association (SVTA), Neo Tiam Ting, told BT that the motor trade body has not been approached by the police. There are 365 members listed on the website of SVTA, Singapore’s largest motor association.

Asked if association members had encountered some of the accused, he said: “I think, for sure, there are some.”

Keith Oh, president of the Automobile Importer & Exporter Association (Singapore), told BT that there have been rumours swirling in relation to the case.

“There are a lot of rumours about who is involved,” he said. “As the president of the association, I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to comment because all these are rumours and speculation.”

CarTimes Group’s head of operations Benjamin Loo told BT that the auto dealer would reject pure cash deals and would advise the prospective buyer to make a bank transfer instead, as it believes that financial institutions would have conducted anti-money laundering checks before allowing customers to open accounts.

Further, the no-cash rule would protect customers and the group from misappropriating money, he said.

SVTA’s Neo, who is also a founder of car dealer Think One Automobile & Trading, said that when cash is received from a buyer, the dealer brings it to the bank to deposit. The dealer would say that the money is from the sale of a particular vehicle and provide the buyer’s information upon request.

He added that there are costs involved in anti-money laundering due-diligence checks. And it is not easy to pass on such expenditures to customers. However, he noted that buyers who pay only by cash are few and far between.

BT has reached out to the police for comment.

Su, a 41-year-old Cambodian national, has been charged with submitting forged documents to Citibank and Standard Chartered Bank.

Other items seized from his home – a Good Class Bungalow along Nassim Road – included cash of more than S$777,000, 33 luxury bags and watches, 75 pieces of jewellery, and five other vehicles.

Three related bank accounts with a total balance of more than S$2.4 million have been frozen.

His case is due for mention on Wednesday (Sep 6).