Sing when you’re sinning? Six Singaporean church leaders convicted for US$36 million fraud with bizarre link to pastor’s pop star wife
The church management board expressed 'disappointment' in the verdict
PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 21 October, 2015, 12:28pm
UPDATED : Wednesday, 21 October, 2015, 9:24pm
Agence France-Presse and Denise Tsang
Top left to right: former finance manager Serina Wee, former fund manager Chew Eng Han, former finance manager Sharon Tan. Bottom left to right: founder Kong Hee, deputy senior pastor Tan Ye Peng and former treasurer John Lam. Photo: Reuters
Six Christian church leaders in Singapore have been convicted of fraud for using US$36 million to turn the pastor’s glamorous singer wife into a global pop star to attract more followers.
After a two-year trial that captivated Singapore with tales of lavish spending and financial deceit, pastor Kong Hee and five aides were found guilty Wednesday of diverting S$24 million (HK$133.8 million) to finance his wife Sun Ho’s singing career, which failed to take off.
The six, who insisted the project was conceived for religious reasons, were also found guilty of misappropriating another S$26 million from the evangelical City Harvest Church (CHC) to cover their tracks, prosecutors said.
Ho, 43, who appeared in a 2007 music video with rapper Wyclef Jean in an attempt to cross over from Mandarin pop and reach a wider English-language audience, was not charged.
The church tried to justify the use of the money saying Ho’s music could be used to attract followers overseas, and spent large sums on high-glitz music videos featuring skimpily clad dancers.
Judge See Kee Oon found pastor Kong and one other church leader guilty of criminal breach of trust. The four others, including the church accountants, were convicted of varying counts of criminal breach of trust as well as the falsification of accounts.
Criminal breach of trust carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, but judicial sources said the actual prison term is limited to a maximum of 20 years.
The six used a practice called “round-tripping”, channelling money allotted for a building fund into sham bonds in linked companies, to finance Ho’s music career, prosecutors said. They also falsified church accounts to make it appear as though the bonds were redeemed.
All six were released on bail until sentencing, with Kong’s bail set at S$1 million.
The church had defended Ho’s attempt to become an international music star as a campaign to spread God’s message to the secular world through music.
About 100 people, mostly church members, packed the courtroom, some having queued overnight to get a seat, and sat in stunned silence as the guilty verdict was read out.
Kong, who founded the church with Ho in 1989, declined to answer questions after the hearing.
His wife, who showed up for the verdict in a grey pantsuit and sporting heavily highlighted hair, thanked followers in a Facebook post.
“Pastor Kong and I are humbled by the tremendous outpouring of love and support shown to us during this time. We thank you for your prayers,” it read.
The post quickly garnered hundreds of comments, many mocking her and the church leaders, while others expressed support.
The pastor and his wife were once a high-profile couple who led the expansion of their congregation to more than 17,500 members, according to a 2014 annual report.
City Harvest Church has a total of 50 affiliate churches in the region and the United States and 30 associate churches on the Chinese mainland.
Peter Ho Chi-dik, the senior pastor of Tung Fook Church, one of the megachurches in Hong Kong, and a friend of Kong, said churches should be careful managing the congregation’s funds.
“A church, whether it is a tiny or a mega one, should have a check and balance system in place,” Ho said.
Ho said Tung Fook Church, which runs six churches in Hong Kong, does not use any of the church’s funds for any investments.
Although City Harvest Church does not have any branches in Hong Kong, it has far-flung influence on the Chinese Christian community especially in Hong Kong and Indonesia.
City Harvest Church composes its own worship songs, mostly in English language, which are widely translated into Cantonese and Indonesian.
