OK Lim’s handwritten notes show he fully understood CAD’s interview statements: prosecutor
PROSECUTORS on Thursday (Nov 23) accused fallen oil tycoon Lim Oon Kuin – better known as OK Lim – of “buying time” and deliberately giving “non-committal answers” to the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD), in order to distance himself from the troubles that were unravelling at oil trading company Hin Leong.
Continuing the prosecution’s cross-examination, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Christopher Ong took Lim through statements recorded during the three interviews Lim had with the CAD in August 2020, November 2020 and June 2021.
DPP Ong told the court that during certain interviews, the businessman made amendments to specific portions of his replies to questions by the investigation officer (IO), or added handwritten notes to the statement when they were read back to him.
Lim, when asked why he felt the need to “handwrite” some paragraphs at the end of certain statements, said that this was because the IO told him that if he did not state what he wanted to say, he would not be able to do so later.
Lim added that he did so as his “health was not good” and he could not “explain (certain things) in detail or understand in detail”. But he agreed with DPP Ong’s suggestion that he did what he did to protect his rights.
However, DPP Ong argued that this showed Lim was of sound mind during the interviews: “I put it to you that, as with the previous statement, the handwritten note to protect yourself shows that you were fully able to understand and comprehend during the recording of this statement.”
BT in your inbox
Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox.
Lim disagreed, adding that he was under “huge pressure” when answering the questions.
DPP Ong then suggested that the tycoon had been untruthful when responding to certain questions in the interview. He added that Lim was trying to distance himself from involvement in actions such as approving Hin Leong’s trades, and managing the company’s cash situation and financing matters.
Lim disagreed, saying he was not involved in and did not manage the accounts.
SEE ALSO
DPP Ong also suggested that Lim had given “non-committal” answers to the CAD during the interviews – notably in instances where specific employees were mentioned – because he did not know then what these employees had told the authorities.
He noted that, in response to certain questions by IO Sim Wan Lin, Lim had replied that he could not recall if he had done certain things.
“I put it to you that, because you did not know what they had told the CAD, you were buying time and giving a non-committal answer,” DPP Ong said. “I put it to you that you were not interested in giving accurate answers when you gave this statement, or any of your other statements.”
Lim disagreed.
Daughter’s role and job scope
DPP Ong also asked OK Lim about the role of his daughter, Lim Huey Ching, at Hin Leong. OK Lim had previously said on Nov 3 that she “managed HR (human resources) and accounts” on the third floor of the company.
In response to questions by DPP Ong, OK Lim said on Thursday that his previous answer on his daughter’s role in the company was “just (a) concept”. He said he was unclear on what she did during her time at the company. Asked why he appeared so reluctant to disclose her role, OK Lim replied: “I only know she is very busy every day… I also have many things to do.”
When grilled by DPP Ong on his daughter’s specific duties, OK Lim said that his employees knew “how to arrange the jobs themselves”. Lim Huey Ching’s role as the person in charge of finance in April 2020, when her father stepped down as managing director of Hin Leong, was “a matter of formality”, OK Lim said. “As to how (things) were actually done, I am not clear.”
DPP Ong also asked OK Lim who gave his daughter the approval to start working at Hin Leong. OK Lim said that he asked his children to join the company after they had completed their studies. “(Hin Leong) is a family business. As a habit among Chinese businesses, families come and help out,” he added.
The Hin Leong founder is facing about 130 forgery and cheating charges, three of which have proceeded to trial. Two of the three charges relate to cheating, and the other, to forgery.
Prosecutors said in their opening statements for the criminal case that HSBC disbursed about US$111.7 million in March 2020 to Hin Leong as payment for two oil sales to Unipec Singapore and China Aviation Oil. They alleged that these two transactions were fraudulent.
The criminal trial continues, with Judge Toh Han Li presiding over the case.
OK Lim’s counsel – lawyers from Davinder Singh Chambers – are expected to commence re-examination, after the prosecutors end their cross-examination. His psychiatrist, a Dr Yeo Seem Huat, is expected to take the stand next week.
Copyright SPH Media. All rights reserved.
