SINGAPORE — Upon learning that his church’s financial affairs were under investigation in 2010, City Harvest Church founder Kong Hee went to his lawyer’s office to put together a lengthy “confession letter”, detailing what he knew of the bonds that were bought from a church-linked entity, among other issues.
The document had information down to the dollar, but when Kong recorded his statement at the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) the next day, his account to the authorities was marred by hazy recollections, the court heard yesterday.
Some of the discrepancies were brought up by co-accused Chew Eng Han, the church’s former treasurer, who felt that certain points in Kong’s letter and subsequent CAD statements were not coherent.
Chew pointed out that while Kong told the CAD he was only aware of the Xtron bonds during an extraordinary general meeting in 2008, the senior pastor wrote in the 12-page letter — which surfaced in court yesterday — that he was told that the music career of his wife, Ms Ho Yeow Sun, could be financed by the bonds right at the time when the idea was born.
Kong and five other church leaders — Chew, Tan Ye Peng, John Lam, Serina Wee, Sharon Tan — are accused of misusing S$24 million of church building funds on sham bond investments in Xtron, the company which managed Ms Ho’s secular music career, and Firna, an Indonesian firm owned by a church member.
They then allegedly misused another S$26.6 million to cover up the first amount.
Kong defended the document, saying that if he had known he was going to be questioned about it so thoroughly, he would have spent more time — even days — on it, instead of writing it down in six to eight hours the day before his CAD interview.
“I did the best I could, Your Honour. I had no intention to mislead or to lie,” said Kong, whose time on the witness stand ended yesterday.
Kong said his intention was to list out everything significant and “come clean” on his understanding of what had happened, as advised by his lawyer.
Earlier in the day, Kong got emotional as he explained why Ms Ho did not return to the United States to complete her album after the CAD investigations started. Apart from the uncertainties on whether she would be charged, their son, then five, needed his mother around, too, said Kong. He added that the CAD investigations were shocking and traumatic for the boy, who had to be uprooted from his life in the US.
The boy was panicky, anxious and “hyperventilating on most days”, and Kong and his wife had to take him to a psychiatrist.
Co-accused and the church’s former finance manager Sharon Tan is expected to take the stand today.
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