Former Minister Faces Five Charges After Prosecution Drops Corruption Counts

Former Singaporean Minister S. Iswaran is expected to plead guilty after the prosecution reduced the charges against him from 35 to five. The corruption charges originally brought against him have been dropped at the start of his trial on September 24, 2024. Iswaran’s lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, indicated that his client will take a specific course of action, typically understood to mean a guilty plea. The remaining charges include four under Section 165 of the Penal Code, which addresses public servants accepting valuable items for inadequate consideration, and one charge of obstructing justice for reimbursing S$5,700 for a business-class flight ticket. The charges stem from incidents in 2023, and Iswaran now faces potential penalties of fines, jail terms, or both.