Law prof in sex-for-grades trial disputes recorded CPIB statement

Law prof in sex-for-grades trial disputes recorded CPIB statement

    By Claire Huang
    POSTED: 12 Apr 2013 4:52 PM
  
The law professor accused of corruptly obtaining gifts and sex from a former student on Friday continued to take issue with words and phrases in his statement recorded by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB).

SINGAPORE: The law professor accused of corruptly obtaining gifts and sex from a former student on Friday continued to take issue with words and phrases in his statement recorded by the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB).

Tey Tsun Hang, 41, faces six allegations that he obtained gifts and sex from his former student, 23-year-old Darinne Ko, in return for giving her better grades between May and July 2010.

On Friday morning, Tey said he could not have used the words "corrupt intent" in the statement recorded by CPIB's Deputy Director Teng Khee Fatt, much less volunteer the definition of those words, "so he could be nailed on the wall".

"So are you seriously proposing a person under interrogation would want to volunteer to you, to describe to you in great detail, detailed meaning ‘of corrupt intent’ so he could be nailed on the wall?" said Tey.

Mr Teng replied Tey had used the words "with corrupt intent" in his previous statements and he was trying to find out from Tey what he had meant by it.

But Tey argued that Mr Teng had given "the most ludicrous proposition for a person under interrogation and psychoactive medication to volunteer the minute definition exercise of ‘corrupt intent’, so as to help himself be nailed on the wall". Mr Teng repeated that Tey had told him so.

Tey also accused Mr Teng of typing some paragraphs himself but the witness said that "was exactly what Professor Tey had told me" to do.

Tey, a former district judge, said throughout on Thursday and Friday Mr Teng's "linguistic expressions" used in court "are similarly manifested in all three statements" he had recorded on 17, 18 and 24 May 2012. Mr Teng disagreed.

A phrase raised during the hearing was described by Tey as "downright nonsensical" - "Bad faiths mean wrong conscientious".

Mr Teng again said it was what Tey had wanted to put in the statement.

In an earlier statement, Tey had said he had given better grades to Ms Ko for two papers, in Personal Property Law as well as Equity and Trust.

In his later statement recorded by Mr Teng, he was allowed to retract that point.

On Friday, Tey said it was because by then, Mr Teng had already received information from the National University of Singapore that the alteration of grades in those two modules "had no basis whatsoever".

Mr Teng explained that Tey was "trying to confuse" him by telling him that he changed Ms Ko's grades at first and saying he did not later.

The trial continues.

- CNA/xq


- wong chee tat :)