<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR>Bank ordered to open client's books in fraud probe
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By Chong Chee Kin
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->THE Court of Appeal has ordered a bank here to open the books of one of its clients in connection with an investigation into a multi-million fraud case in India.
This means that the bank's client, an India-based finance firm, will have to let the authorities pore over, among other things, its correspondence with the bank and a detailed log of all movements of money in and out of its account.
The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) is asking to see these documents in response to a request by the Indian government, which is hot on the trail of the firm, now under investigation for fraud. The company allegedly cheated various banks out of nearly US$18 million (S$25.7 million) 2000 and 2002.
The Court of Appeal's order overturns a decision by High Court judge Justice Kan Ting Chiu when the AGC first made the request in June.
The firm is said to have used forged papers to convince banks to part with millions of dollars, which it wired to banks outside India in which it held accounts.
Among these is one based here, so the Indian government sought help from Singapore.Under the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, foreign requests for help in investigations of criminal offences have to be made to the Attorney-General himself before they are brought before the court.
On Monday, the AGC convinced the court - comprising Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, Justices V.K. Rajah and Andrew Phang - to let the authorities look into the company's account.
In June, Justice Kan said he would rule against the AGC's request because he did not see the request from India. 'It does not conform with the letter and spirit of the Act as it does not... allow the parties under investigation or the bank involved a proper opportunity to oppose the making of such an order,' he said.
But the AGC successfully argued on Monday that the law did not require it to elaborate on the contents and details of the request from a foreign government. The Court of Appeal agreed.
</TR><!-- headline one : end --><!-- Author --><TR><TD class="padlrt8 georgia11 darkgrey bold" colSpan=2>By Chong Chee Kin
</TD></TR><!-- show image if available --></TBODY></TABLE>
<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->THE Court of Appeal has ordered a bank here to open the books of one of its clients in connection with an investigation into a multi-million fraud case in India.
This means that the bank's client, an India-based finance firm, will have to let the authorities pore over, among other things, its correspondence with the bank and a detailed log of all movements of money in and out of its account.
The Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) is asking to see these documents in response to a request by the Indian government, which is hot on the trail of the firm, now under investigation for fraud. The company allegedly cheated various banks out of nearly US$18 million (S$25.7 million) 2000 and 2002.
The Court of Appeal's order overturns a decision by High Court judge Justice Kan Ting Chiu when the AGC first made the request in June.
The firm is said to have used forged papers to convince banks to part with millions of dollars, which it wired to banks outside India in which it held accounts.
Among these is one based here, so the Indian government sought help from Singapore.Under the Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, foreign requests for help in investigations of criminal offences have to be made to the Attorney-General himself before they are brought before the court.
On Monday, the AGC convinced the court - comprising Chief Justice Chan Sek Keong, Justices V.K. Rajah and Andrew Phang - to let the authorities look into the company's account.
In June, Justice Kan said he would rule against the AGC's request because he did not see the request from India. 'It does not conform with the letter and spirit of the Act as it does not... allow the parties under investigation or the bank involved a proper opportunity to oppose the making of such an order,' he said.
But the AGC successfully argued on Monday that the law did not require it to elaborate on the contents and details of the request from a foreign government. The Court of Appeal agreed.
