SINGAPORE: Malaysian property tycoon and hotelier Ong Beng Seng received court permission to leave Singapore for over a week, subject to additional bail conditions including a cash bail of S$800,000 (US$603,600).
According to a CNA report, Lee expressed gratitude for the urgent hearing, noting that the defence had applied for this on Friday with no objections from the prosecution as long as extra conditions were met.
With the additional conditions, his bail now stands at S$1.6 million, on top of his existing S$800,000 bail.
The 78-year-old appeared briefly in court, accompanied by friends and his lawyer, Aaron Lee from Allen & Gledhill.
Ong plans to travel to London and Boston for medical treatment before heading to Gibraltar and Spain for business. He is expected to return to Singapore on Nov 9.
Under the additional conditions, Ong is not allowed to travel with his bailor and must provide his travel itinerary and overseas addresses to the investigating officer.
He must also remain contactable and surrender his passport within 24 hours of returning.
Earlier this month, Ong faced charges under Section 165 and Section 204A of the Penal Code.
He is accused of helping former transport minister S.Iswaran facilitate a S$5,700 (US$4,397) payment to Singapore GP, covering Iswaran's business class flight from Doha to Singapore in December 2022.
He also allegedly instructed a Mok Chee Liang to bill the cost to Iswaran, knowing this could obstruct justice.
He is also accused of encouraging Iswaran to obtain a "valuable thing" for no consideration by arranging a trip to Doha in December 2022, which included a private flight valued at US$7,700, a hotel stay worth S$4,737.63, and the aforementioned flight back to Singapore.
Ong was charged on Oct 4, a day after Iswaran received a 12-month jail sentence for accepting gifts worth S$403,300 over seven years from Ong and another businessman, Lum Kok Seng, while obstructing justice.
Both men were arrested in July last year after the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau discovered Iswaran's name on a flight manifest for Ong's private jet.
Ong's pre-trial conference is scheduled for Nov 15.
If convicted of the Section 165 charge, he could face up to two years in jail, a fine, or both. For the Section 204A charge, the penalty could be up to seven years in jail, a fine, or both.