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Construction manager with offshore EPC contractor charged over bribery

The offense can lead to hefty fines and imprisonment for up to 10 years

A 59-year-old Indian-origin construction manager along with other employees of Modec were charged in a Singapore court on Friday for offences related to bribery and corruption involving around $942,000.

Harish Singhal, an employee of Modec Offshore Production Systems, a general contractor specialising in EPC and installation of floating production systems, is accused of accepting bribes, committing money laundering, and deceiving his employer into paying to another company, The Straits Times newspaper reported.

The offense can lead to hefty fines and imprisonment for up to 10 years.

Between 2011 and 2016, Singhal allegedly conspired with four others to accept bribes for advancing the business interests of a shipping company with Modec, totalling $942,000.

He also allegedly conspired with others to disguise around $313,000 of benefits from criminal conduct, in the form of fictitious invoices, for payments between the two companies, the report said.

“Modec takes a zero-tolerance approach towards bribery and corruption,” the company said in a statement.

“The allegations were made in a whistleblower’s report submitted via our internal reporting system and were internally investigated by us with the assistance of external counsel.”