Brompton T Line bike, whisky, golf clubs: What are the valuables involved in Iswaran’s new charges?

Former transport minister S. Iswaran now faces a total of 35 charges in relation to items worth around $400,000.

He was handed eight new charges on March 25. They allegedly involve Mr Lum Kok Seng, the managing director of Lum Chang, a property management, interior design and construction firm.

According to court documents, Iswaran allegedly obtained as a public servant, from Mr Lum, valuables with a total value of $18,956.94.

The former minister had allegedly known Mr Lum to be involved in a business that had a connection with his official function as Minister for Transport.

The items connected to the eight new charges are:

1. Four bottles of Gordon & MacPhail Caol Ila whisky, worth about $1,084.46 in total, obtained around November 2021.

2. Two bottles of Gordon & MacPhail Caol Ila whisky worth a total of $542.23, three bottles of L’Evangile 2014 wine worth a total of $394.20, three bottles of Pauillac De Latour 2015 wine worth a total of $186.31, three bottles of Albert Bichot Domaine du Clos Frantin Grands Echezeaux Grand Cru 2015 wine worth a total of $1,177.21 and three bottles of Pichon Lalande 2010 wine worth a total of $955.80. These items were obtained around January 2022.

3. A $749 TaylorMade golf driver, obtained around January 2022.

4. Two bottles of Gordon & MacPhail Caol Ila whisky, with a total value of $542.23, obtained around May 2022.

5. A $4,420 set of Honma Beres BE-08 Black AQ MX golf clubs, obtained around June 2022.

6. A $7,907.50 Brompton T Line bicycle, obtained around June 2022. T Line bicycles are the lightest bicycles made by the British brand.

7. Two bottles of M&H Elements Sherry Cask whisky, worth $198 in total, obtained around July 2022.

8. A $600 Scotty Cameron Phantom golf putter and two golf chippers, with a value of about $100 each. The clubs were obtained around November 2022.

Iswaran was first handed 27 charges in January 2024.

He is accused of 24 counts of obtaining, as a minister, items with a total value of more than $200,000 from property tycoon Ong Beng Seng. Mr Ong is the man who brought Formula One (F1) to Singapore.

 

Iswaran allegedly received the following, either from Mr Ong directly, or through Como Holdings (UK) or Singapore GP:

1. Two tickets to the show Thriller, worth about £200 in total (S$429.94, according to court documents), obtained around November 2015.

2. Two tickets to the show The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time, worth about £270 in total, obtained around November 2015.

3. Two tickets to the West Ham United Football Club (FC) v Everton FC (Boleyn Ground) football match, worth £468 in total, obtained around November 2015.

4. Two tickets to the Arsenal FC v Tottenham Hotspur FC (Emirates Stadium) football match, worth about £550 in total, obtained around November 2015.

5. Ten Green Room (hospitality suite) tickets to the 2016 Singapore F1 Grand Prix (GP), worth $42,265 in total, obtained in September 2016.

6. Ten Green Room tickets to the 2017 Singapore F1 GP, worth $42,265 in total, obtained in September 2017.

7. Five boardwalk tickets to the 2017 Singapore F1 GP, worth about $40,000 in total, obtained in September 2017.

8. Four tickets to the show The Book Of Mormon, worth about £540 in total, obtained around December 2017.

9. Four tickets to the Chelsea FC v Southampton FC (Stamford Bridge) football match, worth about £700 in total, obtained around December 2017.

10. Four tickets to the shows Harry Potter And The Cursed Child: Part 1 and Harry Potter And The Cursed Child: Part 2, worth about £1,000 in total, obtained around December 2017.

11. Four tickets to the Arsenal FC v Liverpool FC (Emirates Stadium) football match, worth about £1,100 in total, obtained around December 2017.

12. Four tickets to the show Kinky Boots, worth about £300 in total, obtained around December 2017.

13. Six Twenty3 hospitality tickets to the 2018 Singapore F1 GP, worth $13,193.10 in total, obtained in September 2018.

14. Thirteen general admission tickets to the 2018 Singapore F1 GP, worth $16,744 in total, obtained in September 2018.

15. Four tickets to the show The Play That Goes Wrong, worth about £380 in total, obtained around December 2018.

16. Four tickets to the show School Of Rock, worth about £560 in total, obtained around December 2018.

17. Four tickets to the Chelsea FC v Manchester City FC (Stamford Bridge) football match, worth at least £120 in total, obtained around December 2018.

18. Four tickets to the show Hamilton, worth about £400 in total, obtained around June 2019.

19. Four tickets to the show Waitress, worth £524 in total, obtained some time around June 2019.

20. Four tickets to the show Betrayal, worth about £1,080 in total, obtained around June 2019.

21. Six Green Room tickets to the 2019 Singapore F1 GP, worth $26,643 in total, obtained some time in September 2019.

22. Sixteen general admission tickets to the 2019 Singapore F1 GP, worth $20,608 in total, obtained some time in September 2019.

23. Two tickets to the show Back To The Future, worth £449 in total, obtained around December 2021.

24. Two tickets to the show & Juliet, worth about £250 in total, obtained around December 2021.

Graft charges

Iswaran was handed two graft charges in January 2024.

1. He allegedly corruptly obtained 10 Green Room tickets worth about $48,150, eight Twenty3 tickets worth $56,068 and 32 general admission tickets to the 2022 Singapore F1 GP worth $41,216. These tickets were obtained in September 2022.

2. In December 2022, he allegedly corruptly obtained an outbound flight on Mr Ong’s private plane from Singapore to Doha, worth about US$7,700 ($10,410.40, according to court documents); a night’s stay at Four Seasons Hotel Doha, worth $4,737.63, through Singapore GP; and a business class flight from Doha to Singapore, worth about $5,700, through Singapore GP.

They were purportedly an inducement for advancing Mr Ong’s business interests in matters relating to: a contract with a public body, the facilitation agreement between Singapore GP and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB); and a proposal for a contract with STB to establish the Abba Voyage virtual concert in Singapore.

Obstruction of justice charge

Iswaran is also accused of performing an act that could most likely obstruct the course of justice.

He allegedly repaid $5,700 to Singapore GP for the cost of his business class flight from Doha to Singapore that he purportedly took on Dec 11, 2022, at Mr Ong’s expense through Singapore GP.