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By John Geddie
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Singapore police are investigating a complaint by Ernst & Young that a company owned by Newcastle United soccer club bidders allegedly used the auditor’s unauthorized signatures on financial statements.
The investigation is the latest scrutiny by Singaporean business duo Terence and Nelson Loh since Reuters reported that their other company behind the Newcastle bid tampered with photos of Barack Obama and made other suspicious claims in marketing materials.
The police report released this week relates to the Cayman Islands financial statements incorporated into the Ninth Global Healthcare Group, which according to the Singapore Straits Times newspaper is owned by Loh’s cousins.
A spokeswoman for Ernst & Young said they were “never the auditors” for the Cayman Islands parent company and that it worked for a Singapore-based subsidiary only in 2017.
Police said they had received the complaint and were investigating the matter.
Neither of the Lohs, who came into the limelight last month as co-founders of the newly formed Bellagraph Nova Group, who claimed to be in advanced talks to buy one of England’s biggest clubs, responded to a request for comment.
A lawyer who spoke on behalf of Terence Loh told the Straits Times that he was aware of the allegations, but denied wrongdoing.
Following the Reuters report, several other inconsistencies emerged in BN Group’s claims made on its website, press releases and social media posts, which it said “appears to be the result of the actions of certain roving individuals.”
Meanwhile, individuals and companies linked to the group began to distance themselves, while Singapore’s Business Times newspaper reported that some regional investors were trying to withdraw investments from the group’s entities.
Singapore’s corporate regulator ACRA has also said it is taking enforcement action on two other companies linked to Lohs for failing to file annual returns.
(Reporting by John Geddie; Editing by Michael Perry)
