Ng Lap Seng | New charges brought against Macau tycoon

Further charges were yesterday brought against Macau real estate tycoon Ng Lap Seng, who is currently standing trial in New York for allegedly bribing former United Nations General Assembly president, John Ashe, as well as other U.N. officials. Ng has also been accused of money laundering after failing to declare the true purpose of bringing large sums of money into the U.S.

The new charges include an alleged violation of the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act – which Ng’s assistant, Jeff Yin, is also accused of violating – as well as allegations of tax evasion.

The tax evasion charges stem from allegations that Ng had sought help from a Dominican Republic diplomat, who in turn assisted in the concealing of parts of the Macau tycoon’s income from U.S.’s tax authorities.

Prosecutors also unveiled yesterday that the Macau real estate developer had operated under an alias known only as “Boss Wu”.

In addition to the bribes allegedly handed to the recently deceased Ashe, Ng has also been charged with having provided benefits to one or more officials from the UN’s Development Program to garner their support for the construction of a conference center in Macau.

His donation, which amounted to about half a million U.S. dollars, is believed to have been intended to serve as the billionaire’s legacy.

Ng’s Sun Kian Ip Group has also been tied to a USD1.5 million (MOP12 million) donation to the UN Office for South-South Cooperation, which focuses on promoting collaboration among developing countries. DB