Hin Leong oil tycoon OK Lim (82) sentenced to 17.5 years in prison

SINGAPORE: Lim Oon Kuin, the elderly founder of collapsed oil trading company Hin Leong Trading, was sentenced to 17-and-a-half years in prison on Monday (Nov 18). He is in jail in a cheating case involving at least US$111.7 million (S$150 million).

The prosecution had previously told the court that the 82-year-old, also known as OK Lim, orchestrated one of the most serious cases of trade finance fraud in Singapore.

Lim faced more than 100 charges and contested them at trial, but was found guilty of two counts of defrauding the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) and one count of abetting forgery.

His conviction involved two fraudulent transactions related to the sale of oil and the presentation of false documents that led HSBC to provide loans of at least US$111.7 million to Hin Leong.

On Monday, Lim’s lawyer said his client would appeal the sentence.

Deputy Prosecutors Christopher Ong, Kelvin Chong and Foo Shi Hao asked for a 20-year prison sentence for Lim. They had previously argued that the charges were “the worst possible examples of fraud” and could undermine confidence in Singapore’s oil trading industry.

They also said no weight should be given to Lim’s age or medical condition, given the seriousness of his crimes.

Lim is represented by a team of lawyers from Davinder Singh Chambers, who are seeking a seven-year prison sentence.

Senior Advocate Davinder Singh had previously argued that there were “very serious loopholes” in a letter from the prison service and that the prosecution used it to say Lim’s needs could be met in prison.

Mr Singh said the letter did not address all of Lim’s medical conditions, which include anxiety, depression, insomnia, enlarged prostate, asthma, coronary artery disease and cerebral vascular disease with cognitive impairment.

Lim’s trial, which began in April 2023, focused on who directed Hin Leong staff to prepare documents that made it look like the oil trader had entered into two fraudulent transactions.

In May, Chief District Judge Toh Han Li ruled that Lim had instructed his employees to prepare false documents for two alleged transactions in March 2020.

At the time of the crimes, Lim was the managing director and 75 per cent shareholder of Hin Leong, an oil trading company based in Singapore.

Judge Toh found that Lim remained Hin Leong’s “big boss” even after he resigned in April 2020, that he was “hands-on” and that his approval was required for swaps.

Lim was also involved in a civil lawsuit filed by the liquidators against the Lim family. This ended after Lim and her two children consented to a settlement. 3.5 billion dollar decision is being waged against them.

In September, Lim, his daughter Lim Huey Ching and son Evan Lim Chee Meng also said they would file for bankruptcy because they did not have enough assets to pay their creditors.