SINGAPORE, Nov 22 — An insurance agent who allegedly tried to bribe an officer at the Indonesian Embassy between March and June 29 this year was charged yesterday along with two other Singaporeans.

James Yeo Siew Liang, 47, an insurance agent for AIG Asia Pacific Insurance and Liberty Insurance, faces 18 corruption charges for allegedly handing over S$71,200 (RM216,546) meant for the embassy official to the freelance translator, and for rewarding the translator with around S$21,400.

Yeo wanted the embassy official, Agus Ramdhany Machjumi, to favour AIG and Liberty Insurance for the provision of performance bonds related to the employment of Indonesian domestic workers in Singapore.

The translator, Abdul Aziz Mohamed Hanib, 63, was allegedly introduced to Yeo by Benjamin Chow Tuck Keong, 55, the corporate development director of bio-organic solutions company Alpha Process Solutions.

It was not mentioned in court documents how Chow knew Yeo and Aziz, or whether Agus — listed on the embassy’s website as its labour attache — ultimately received the S$71,200.

Court documents stated that Yeo had handed Aziz the S$71,200 for Agus in eight separate sums that ranged from S$2,211.60 to S$15,400.

In a press release by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB), it was stated that Chow knew that Aziz was seeking bribes related to accreditation to sell the performance bond.

The performance bond was a new requirement introduced in April this year by the embassy for employers of Indonesian domestic helpers.\

Employers pay about S$70 for a performance bond guarantee from either AIG or Liberty Insurance, and they also have to sign a standard employment contract issued by the embassy. They would have pay up to the full sum of S$6,000 if they breach the conditions in the employment contract, such as by failing to pay the helper’s salary on time.

Aziz faces eight charges for corruptly receiving the S$71,200 for Agus, and 10 charges for corruptly receiving the S$21,400 as a reward from Yeo.

He faces one charge for his failed attempt to seek bribes for Agus from two individuals representing Tokio Marine Insurance Singapore, for the insurer to be accredited as a provider of the performance bond.

The two Tokio Marine representatives are David Loh Yeow Kwong and Michael Chew Yew Kuen. CPIB said that the men were asked to give a 40 per cent commission on each performance bond sold in exchange for favour shown to Tokio Marine.

Chow faces one charge of abetting Aziz to seek bribes from Yeo for Agus.

The CPIB said that there is no evidence to suggest that AIG and Liberty were complicit in the corruption offences. No charges are being tendered against them.

The Indonesian Embassy was also not complicit in the corruption offences, the bureau said.

The performance bond was a point of disagreement this year between the embassy and Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM). The ministry had said it was unnecessary because of Singapore’s "comprehensive” regulatory framework.

The embassy’s performance bond is separate from the S$5,000 security bond that MOM requires of employers, to ensure that both the domestic worker and employer comply with conditions of the Work Permit.

Reiterating Singapore’s zero-tolerance approach towards corruption, the CPIB said yesterday: "It is a serious offence to bribe or attempt to bribe another individual or entity.”

Those convicted may be fined up to S$100,000 and jailed up to five years for each corruption offence.

Yeo and Aziz are out on a S$50,000 bail, and Chow is out on a S$10,000 bail.

They will return to court on Dec 17 after seeking legal advice, and are now unrepresented.

TODAY has reached out to the Indonesian Embassy, AIG and Liberty Insurance for comments.

Agus was not among those charged yesterday.

CNN Indonesia reported the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying it had received information regarding the case.

Lalu Muhammad Iqbal, the ministry’s director for overseas citizen protection, was quoted saying that Agus had been sent back to Jakarta.

"We have received the information and have taken internal action,” he said.

Quoting an unnamed foreign ministry official, the report said that Agus was a "technical attache” from Indonesia’s manpower ministry who was placed at the country’s embassy in Singapore. The official also said that Agus was not tried in Singapore because he held a diplomatic passport, and he would go through the necessary processes in Indonesia. — TODAY

* In a previous version of the story, it was reported that the Indonesian Embassy’s performance bond for employers of Indonesian domestic helpers was introduced last April. This is incorrect. It was introduced in April this year.

** The story also stated that the two Tokio Marine representatives were promised a 40 per cent commission on each performance bond sold in exchange for bribes. This is incorrect. They were asked to give a 40 per cent commission on each performance bond sold in exchange for favour shown to Tokio Marine, but refused. We are sorry for the errors.