Five Nippon Paint employees charged with cheating

FIVE employees of Nippon Paint Singapore, including its general manager, have been charged in court on Wednesday (Nov 22) for allegedly committing cheating offences involving S$370,000.

They each face one charge for the offence of cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property under Section 420 of the Penal Code read with Section 109 of the Penal Code. The charges have been amalgamated under Section 124(4) of the Criminal Procedure Code 2010.

The accused are: Ong Min Khim, 58, general manager of Nippon Paint; Ng Hwee Heng, Davis (Huang Weixing), 51, senior manager of Nippon Paint; Chua Bingwen Gerald (Cai Bingwen Gerald), 41, also a senior manager of Nippon Paint; Lee Susan (Li Susan), 46, a senior sales executive of Nippon Paint; and Er Sok Tin, 57, a trainer at Nippon Paint.

All five have been put on suspension until further notice, Nippon Paint said.

From April 2021 to February 2022, the five allegedly conspired on 11 occasions to cheat Nippon Paint into thinking they had no vested interest in TLC Painting & Construction – a company that Nippon Paint was purchasing services from.

Between Jul 22, 2021, and Dec 24, 2021, Nippon Paint issued 11 cheques with a total value of S$370,000 as a result of this deception.

A NEWSLETTER FOR YOU

Friday, 8.30 am

SGSME

Get updates on Singapore's SME community, along with profiles, news and tips.

Sign Up

If convicted, the five could each face imprisonment for up to 10 years and fines.

In January 2023, an ex-Nippon Paint executive was charged with insider trading for communicating non-public and material information about the company’s proposed acquisition of DuluxGroup.