The mother of a former national table tennis player was given six weeks' jail sentence on Tuesday, January 30, for trying to bribe the director of the Singapore Table Tennis Association (STTA).
The 56-year-old Chinese woman, Su Fengxian, is the mother of Li Hu, who has been accused of insubordination and breach of Code of Conduct by the STTA. Su offered the bribe as a price for being lenient with her son in the disciplinary hearing.
She has been found guilty of one charge of offering 2,000 euros or S$3247 to STTA's technical director Loy Soo Han at STTA premises in Lorong 6 Toa Payoh on October 17, 2016.
29-year-old Li, a former world junior singles champion, had been sacked after a disciplinary committee hearing in October 2017 after it was found that he had breached the Code of Conduct multiple times. He had also allowed a woman to spend the night at the STTA dormitory on more than one occasion.
At the hearing on Tuesday, the prosecution sought four months' jail term for Su, whereas her lawyer Alfred Dodwell asked for a fine. After the court's decision was announced, Dodwell said that they will file an appeal against the conviction and punishment.
Su was found guilty on January 2 after a three-day trial by District Judge Chay Yeun Fatt. According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Jasmin Kaur, Su was in China when her son informed her in October 2016 that he was facing disciplinary action from STTA.
After this, she tried to persuade Loy several times over the phone and in person for leniency on her son's behalf. She had also contacted STTA President Ellen Lee on social media for the same purpose.
Su finally approached Loy in his office with a cash-filled envelope, after which he stopped her and asked her to leave.
For trying to bribe the officials of STTA, the maximum sentence is five years' jail term and fine of up to S100,000.
