Tey 'depraved' and had 'ulterior motive'
By Joy Fang
My Paper
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
He was untruthful, two-faced, and his conduct was depraved.
That was how Chief District Judge Tan Siong Thye described National University of Singapore (NUS) law professor Tey Tsun Hang, 42, before convicting him on six counts of corruption.
In a strongly-worded judgment which took 31/2 hours to deliver, the judge said that there was "overwhelming evidence" that Tey had taken undue advantage of his former student, Ms Darrine Ko, 23.
Tey had been charged last July with six counts of corruptly obtaining gifts and sex from Ms Ko in exchange for better grades.
In the judgment spanning more than 100 pages, the judge noted that Tey had illustrious achievements that overwhelmed Ms Ko, who was "impressionable".
He had also sought her out, initiating their meals and the sexual intercourse between them, said Judge Tan.
"It is a no-brainer that there was an obvious imbalance of power in favour of the accused. The accused had abused his position and power," the judge said.
He also questioned if the pair were truly in a "mutually-loving relationship".
This is because Tey made no mention of being in a relationship in his statements to Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau officers, he said.
This was in "stark contrast" to how the relationship became his full-blown defence when the second tranche of his trial began on April 1, after former Central Narcotics Bureau chief Ng Boon Gay was acquitted in his sex-for-contracts case on Feb 14.
In Ng's case, the judge ruled that acts of oral sex were born out of a relationship between Ng and former sales manager Cecilia Sue, and deemed him not corrupt.
In contrast, Judge Tan noted that Tey was "devoid of affection" in his communication with Ms Ko. In fact, he was "terse in his e-mails to her, sometimes to the point of being curt".
For instance, Tey failed to begin his e-mails with warm salutations such as "Hi Baby", or sign off with "With Love", added the judge.
He also said Tey had implicitly hinted to her about getting him a Mont Blanc pen and an iPod as gifts. But after he realised she would do whatever he said, his conduct "became more flagrant and egregious", and he simply asked her to pay for two tailored shirts and a dinner, he said.
Judge Tan also noted that Tey made no attempts to repay Ms Ko. He said: "It was a relationship with an ulterior motive...The truth is that the accused wanted to sponge off (Ms Ko)."
In mitigation, Tey's lawyer, Mr Peter Low, said his client had received eight testimonials from fellow professors and 22 from former students vouching for his "good" character.
He said Tey had led an "exemplary life" prior to this "lapse of judgment". He also said the amounts involved in buying the gifts were of "small value", and asked the judge to consider a sentence of a "stiff fine".
Tey's lawyer said he will wait for his client to be sentenced before deciding whether to file an appeal.
As the judge spoke, Tey, who sat in the dock, occasionally shook his head. When the hearing was over, he hugged and kissed his friends and family members on their cheeks.
A statement from NUS yesterday said that it has terminated Tey from his appointment "with immediate effect".
It said: "Despite the gravity of Mr Tey's offences, we note that the prosecution did not allege that grades were tampered with."
NUS said that it is conducting its own internal review to ensure the integrity of its grading system and has thus far found no evidence of any irregularities.
The only active PAP leaning clowns here are from mediacockadoo and new paper. Once in awhile, Shin Min trash will come in here to steal news.
