CEO convicted of pushing elderly businessman down stairs after dispute over S$2.4 million ‘loan’

SINGAPORE: After a fictitious payment for S$ 2.4 million( US$ 1.8 million ) was not repaid, two individuals began to enjoy and maintain close ties.

The merchant, chief executive of the SGX mainboard-listed logistics organization Vibrant Group Khua Kian Keong, was rejected when he attempted to obtain a sum of S$ 100,000 that, in his opinion, would demonstrate the borrower’s sincerity.

He pushed the 74-year-old debtor’s father down a flight of stairs in his rage, leaving him bloodied and with physical injuries.

Khua, 55, was found guilty on Thursday( August 3) of one matter of intentionally harming Mr. Tan Tock Han in January 2021 after requesting a test.

Great RELATIONSHIPS VERGED SOUR

For about 50 years, Khua and his family were close associates with the victim’s home. Khua’s parents and the sufferer used to play sport together. & nbsp,

Mr. Wilson Tan Kheng Yeow, the defendant’s son, was acquainted with Khua since they were youth and would get together for dinner and drinks.

The Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the board of directors of Thong Chai Hospital, and the Singapore Metal and Machinery Association are just a few of the organizations Khua and victim worked for up.

According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Yvonne Poon,” they were practically household names in the group of native Chinese traders, among whom the accused even enjoyed a good reputation.”

The target served as KTL Global’s director and executive chairman at the time, and the Tan home played a significant role in the management of the SGX mainboard-listed organization and its subsidiary,KTL Offshore.

When Wilson, the defendant’s child, was the CEO of KTL Global, Khua allegedly approached him because he needed funds. They allegedly consented to Khua extending Wilson a product totaling about S$ 2.4 million in exchange for 15.5 million shares of KTL Global.

Khua claimed that these quantities were money rather than investments. He didn’t charge interest and only gave Wilson the loans because he thought of him as a good friend; there was no document outlining them because, in his opinion, their friendship outweighed the need for clear-cut documents.

Khua went to Wilson’s parents otherwise when Wilson failed to repay him because Wilson had extended the money under the pretext that the KTL firms needed cash.

Khua’s attempt to reclaim the money or acknowledge the debts were rejected by the Tan household for six decades. Khua asserted that the Tan home claimed that life is difficult, organization is sluggish, or the shipping sector is in bad shape.

Khua attempted to ask Wilson for the money up in 2018 when he himself ran into cashflow problems at his business, claiming to need it.

Khua is a very wealthy person, according to the prosecutor, and the loss of S$ 2.5 million did never infuriate him or impair his standard of living.

But, Khua came to question whether the Tan home was sincere in returning the money to him, as well as their standing among the local Chinese businessmen.

According to Ms. Poon,” He was known to be a prosperous merchant, with strong business expertise, and of great character.” Despite that, he continued to make errors. He had erred by putting his faith in the Tan clan.

THE OCCASION

Khua went to the KTL company at 7 Gul Drive on January 13, 2021, to ask Wilson’s parents for a symbolic payment of Siemens$ 100,000. He was interested in seeing if the alleged funding would be honored by the Tan home.

Khua spoke in a quiet, obnoxious, and harsh words, according to testimony at the office.

The target testified that he had informed Khua of his lack of funds. & nbsp,

Someone shoved him in the back as he was making his way towards a set of stairs, and the sufferer felt” a great power.”

He claimed he couldn’t see who it was but surmised that someone was pushing him with their fingers. & nbsp,

Khua denied assaulting the sufferer. He claimed to have attempted to use his fingers to take the victim again while attempting to caution him against slipping.

Due to disagreements over the exact order of events, closed-circuit broadcast footage that was available only half captured what occurred.

The victim felt lightheaded and was unable to talk after being pushed down the flight of stairs. He was bloodied, attempting to stand up, and speaking softly, according to a watcher.

The victim’s legs were bruised, his face was broken, and his hands and mouth were cut when he was taken to the hospital.

Khua allegedly provided” shifting, inconsistent” addresses in an effort to” dissemble and separate himself from responsibility for his actions ,” according to the trial.

Khua could not have pushed the victim down the stairs, according to the defense, despite his repeated assertions that he had hardly done so, the fact that the man appeared to be nonviolent, had a great deal of respect for the woman, and was informed that her son was the greatest creditor.

In the end, the judge found him guilty.

In October, Khua may go back to judge for prevention and punishment.

The maximum sentence for intentionally causing serious harm is 10 years in prison and punishment. Khua is older than 50, so he cannot get caned.

One of the three loans that make up the S$ 2.4 million total was ordered by a court to pay Khua S$ 933,800 in March of this year.