PUBLISHED ONJuly 21, 2025 1:30 AMBYSean LerA pre-trial conference for billionaire and hotelier Ong Beng Seng set for July 23 has been rescheduled to next week.
Ong, 79, was charged with two offences in October 2024.
Both of his charges are in relation to former transport minister S Iswaran, who was sentenced to 12 months' jail last October.
Ong, the chairman of Formula One promoter Singapore Grand Prix (GP), allegedly offered Iswaran an all-expenses paid trip to Doha in December 2022.
He is also accused of obstructing the course of justice by alerting Iswaran that the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau had seized the flight manifest for the trip from Doha to Singapore.
Ong had previously indicated he wished to plead guilty on April 2.
This was postponed to July 3 after his lawyers asked for an extension to obtain his medical reports., Ong has been diagnosed with cancer and was reportedly undergoing chemotherapy for multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.
A day before he was set to plead guilty, the hearing was changed to a pre-trial conference on July 8, with a judiciary spokesperson saying both sides had asked for more time to file sentencing submissions.
A pre-trial conference is usually held in chambers and involves the court and parties involved in a case. It is intended to sort out administrative matters, including the scheduling of court dates.
The hearing on July 8 was adjourned to July 23 for parties to file revised papers. No further details were given.
According to the court system, the July 23 hearing has now been rescheduled to July 28. It was not indicated who made the request.
AsiaOne has contacted the Attorney-General's Chambers for more information.
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