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Jul 22, 2010
CASHBACK TRIAL
Cabby cleared of two charges
<!-- by line --> By K. C. Vijayan
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Koh was acquitted of making a false statement in a statutory declaration, and asking for a bribe from a flat buyer in 2003. -- ST PHOTO: NURIA LING
<!-- story content : start --> CAB driver Koh Sia Kang, linked to an alleged HDB cashback probe that started five years ago, was cleared of two criminal charges on Wednesday. However, he still faces a charge of filing a false claim before the court - an offence which carries a maximum punishment of two years' jail and a fine. He will return to court next month.
Koh was acquitted of making a false statement in a statutory declaration, and asking for a bribe from a flat buyer in 2003. His acquittal comes a week after the Court of Appeal's decision to overturn lawyer Bachoo Mohan Singh's conviction for allegedly helping him make the false claim.
District Judge James Leong said prosecutors had failed to prove the charges against Koh, 56, beyond reasonable doubt. Central to the case was the sale of Koh's flat, which was transacted at $390,000. The price was allegedly inflated to $490,000 so that the buyer could pocket an extra $100,000 from a bank loan. Prosecutors said Koh knew he was making a false statement when he mentioned the higher price in the statutory declaration.
Read the full story in Friday's edition of the Straits Times.
