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SINGAPORE: Karl Liew Kai Lung, son of former Changi Airport Group chairman Liew Mun Leong, was charged on Thursday (November 5) with providing false evidence and information in the case of Parti Liyani, the former maid of his family.
Karl Liew, 43, was charged with giving false evidence and providing false information to a public official.
He is charged with knowingly providing false evidence on July 17, 2018 in state court before District Judge Olivia Ho.
According to the indictment, he testified in court, while legally bound by oath, that he owned a cream polo shirt and a red blouse, when he did not believe those statements were true.
He is also accused of giving a statement at his home to a public servant on December 10, 2016, saying that he found “119 pieces of clothing” belonging to him, in boxes packed by Ms Parti.
It was then that he was legally obligated to truly state what he knew regarding an alleged crime of robbery by a servant.
Karl Liew, who was limping and accompanied by a woman, was defended by attorney Adam Maniam of Drew & Napier.
His attorney asked for six weeks to render representations on the case, saying the matter occurred quite some time ago in 2016 and 2018.
Karl Liew was offered bail of S $ 15,000 and will return to court on December 17.
This comes after Ms Parti was convicted and later acquitted of stealing items from the Liews worth S $ 34,000. Subsequently, he took further action by requesting an investigation for alleged misconduct by prosecutors in his case and going to court to obtain a compensation order, estimating his losses at around S $ 71,000 over four years.
READ: Parti Liyani seeks compensation order for robbery trial, says she suffered losses of around S $ 71,000
Karl Liew was one of the few members of her family to testify at Ms. Parti’s trial in a district court, which found her guilty and sentenced her to 26 months in prison.
Some of the items allegedly stolen belonged to Karl Liew, who, according to the court, sometimes had disputes with Ms Parti over housework.
When he told Ms. Parti that she had been fired, she allegedly told him: “I know why. You are angry because I refused to clean your bathroom.” Ms Parti had to do additional cleaning work at Karl Liew’s home and office, the Superior Court said in its ruling.
Judge Chan Seng Onn said in his verdict that he acquitted Ms. Parti that some aspects of Karl Liew’s evidence “cast serious doubts on Karl’s credibility.” He had overestimated the value of an allegedly stolen watch by S $ 15,000 and claimed to wear women’s clothing that was allegedly taken from him.
READ: Maid acquitted of stealing S $ 34,000 worth of items from Changi Airport Group president’s home
“Karl’s testimony that he was in possession of various women’s items that Parti allegedly stole from him is also highly suspicious,” Judge Chan said in his Sept. 4 sentencing.
After Ms. Parti was acquitted, Liew Mun Leong announced that she was retiring from her commercial and public service roles at Changi Airport Group, Surbana Jurong, the Temasek Foundation and Temasek International.
READ: Liew Mun Leong retires from CAG, other business and public service roles after court decision on Parti Liyani case
Police said in a statement Wednesday that the Attorney General’s Office ordered them to carry out further investigations after the High Court ruling and comments on Ms Parti’s case, to assess whether the Liews committed any crime.
After completing investigations and consulting with AGC, the police announced Karl Liew’s charges. The indictment comes a day after Justice Minister K Shanmugam said in a ministerial statement that Karl Liew was investigated for possible crimes, including perjury, which refers to the presentation of false evidence in court.
If you are convicted of providing false information to a public servant, and if that information is in connection with the commission of a crime, you could be jailed for up to three years, fined, or both.
If you are found guilty of knowingly providing false information at any stage in a court proceeding, you could be jailed for up to seven years and fined.
