Legal

Shell MGO bunker heist: Bunker clerk sentenced to 7.5 year in jail

Wong Kuin Wah, 61, reportedly helped the Singapore-based company he worked to acquire misappropriated gas oil and committed the offences over 45 occasions between August 2014 and January 2018.

Published

8 months ago

November 20, 2024

Admin

A bunker clerk, previously employed by Sentek Marine & Trading Pte Ltd (Sentek), was sentenced to seven years and six months’ jail on 18 November for his role in misappropriating more than 27,000 tonnes of gas oil worth around USD 12.8 million (SGD 17.2 million), The Straits Times reported.

Wong Kuin Wah, 61, reportedly helped the company acquire the gas oil and committed the offences over 45 occasions between August 2014 and January 2018.

The firm was involved in buying and selling fuels, including gas oil, at the time of the offences, with Wong assigned to a bunkering vessel called Sentek 26.

The Singaporean pleaded guilty to 12 counts of facilitating the receipt of the misappropriated fuel.

Wong also had 12 graft charges withdrawn and the court granted him a discharge amounting to an acquittal for them.

Manifold Times previously reported three bunker clerks, previously employed by Sentek, being charged in Court for offences under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (CDSA) and the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA).

They were Singaporeans Wong Kuin Wah, Wong Wai Meng, and Boo Pu Wen.

It was alleged that Wai Meng, Kuin Wah and Pu Wen intentionally aided Sentek in acquiring property which was another person’s benefits from criminal conduct, by assisting to receive on board their respective vessels, gasoil which had been dishonestly misappropriated from Shell Eastern Petroleum (Pte) Ltd’s facility (Shell Pulau Bukom). They were charged for offences under Section 47(3) of the CDSA, read with Section 109 of the Penal Code, and punishable under Section 47(6)(a) of the CDSA.

Former Shell employees, who were key members of a group who dishonestly misappropriated fuel from Shell Pulau Bukom, were sentenced to jail in court earlier.

Earlier coverage of developments by Manifold Times regarding the Shell MGO bunker heist can be found below:

Photo credit: Katrin Bolovtsova
Published: 20 November, 2024

Winding up

Singapore: Somerset Maritime Pte Ltd to undergo voluntary wind up, selects liquidator

Creditors are required on or before 9 August 2025 to send in their names and addresses with particulars to liquidator at 18 Robinson Road, #20-02 18 Robinson, Singapore 048547.

Published

4 hours ago

July 15, 2025

Admin

Singapore-registered Somerset Maritime Pte Ltd and related companies will voluntarily wind up following an Extraordinary General Meeting on 30 June, according to a Government Gazette notice published on Thursday (10 June).

In August 2020, HSBC reportedly arrested two product tankers owned by Somerset Maritime over cargo claims totalling USD 6 million. HSBC filed cargo claims worth USD 3 million against each vessel.

The resolutions set out below were duly passed:

SPECIAL RESOLUTIONS

VOLUNTARY WINDING UP

RESOLVED THAT the company be wound up voluntarily pursuant to Section 160(1)(b) of the Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018 (“IRDA”).

POWER OF LIQUIDATOR

RESOLVED THAT the Liquidator be authorised to exercise any of his power given by Section 177 of the IRDA and to distribute to member(s) either in cash or in specie any part or all of the surplus assets of the Company, if any.

ORDINARY RESOLUTION

APPOINTMENT OF LIQUIDATOR

RESOLVED THAT Mr Junichi Naganawa be and is hereby appointed Liquidator for the purpose of winding up the affairs of the Company and distributing the assets, if any and that his remuneration be fixed on the usual scale of his professional charges for the work involved.

In another notice, the liquidator of the company said creditors are required on or before 9 August 2025 to send in their names and addresses with particulars (if any) to liquidator at 18 Robinson Road, #20-02 18 Robinson, Singapore 048547.

The liquidator may require creditors or their solicitors to “come in and prove their said debts or claims at such time and place as shall be specified in such notice or in default thereof, they will be excluded from the benefit of any distribution made before such debts are proved.”

Photo credit: steve pb from Pixabay
Published: 15 July, 2025

Incident

India: MSC faces USD 1.1 billion lawsuit from Kerala state over “MSC ELSA 3” bunker spill

Reports noted approximately 84 mt of diesel and 376 mt of fuel oil on board the stricken vessel when it sank carrying 643 boxes.

Published

6 days ago

July 9, 2025

Admin

Swiss-based Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) is reportedly facing a USD 1.1 billion lawsuit from India’s southern state of Kerala which is seeking compensation over marine fuel leaked from MSC ELSA 3 into the Arabian Sea in May.

The High Court of Kerala on Monday (7 July) ordered authorities to seize containership MSC Akiteta II which was anchored in Vizhinjam Port until securities for the claim amount are deposited.

The 1,700 TEU capacity containership MSC ELSA 3 was sailing from Vizhinjam to Kochi when failure in its ballast management system caused it to sink on 25 May about 13 nautical miles off the coast of Kerala.

Reports noted approximately 84 metric tonnes (mt) of diesel and 376 mt of fuel oil on board the stricken vessel when it sank carrying 643 boxes.

Photo credit: Indian Ministry of Defence
Published: 9 July 2025

Legal

Shell MGO bunker heist: Co-conspirator receives 302-month jail sentence

Abdul Latif Bin Ibrahim and accomplices siphoned over 150,000 mt of gasoil worth at least USD 74 million from Shell Pukom between August 2014 and January 2018.

Published

7 days ago

July 8, 2025

Admin

A Judge at the High Court of the Republic of Singapore on Monday (7 July) sentenced Abdul Latif Bin Ibrahim, a former Process Technician working at Shell Pulau Bukom, to a jail term of 25 years and two months (302 months), reported the Straits Times.

Latif pleaded guilty to a total of 30 charges – 20 charges under criminal breach of trust and 10 charges under money laundering – while consenting to have 34 remaining charges taken into consideration for the purposes of sentencing.

The 67-year-old male is due to start his prison sentence on 30 September 2025.

Court documents obtained by Singapore bunkering publication Manifold Times showed Latif, with the help of other rogue Shell employees, siphoning over 150,000 metric tonnes (mt) of gasoil valued at least USD 74,469,000 (approximately SGD 100,601,000) from Shell Eastern Petroleum Pte Ltd’s (Shell) Pulau Bukom facility between August 2014 and January 2018.

Latif was arrested on 7 January 2018.

Investigations found him receiving a total of at least about SGD 7 million in criminal benefits between 2014 to 2018, of which he spent these monies on luxury watches, foreign property, cars, amongst others.

Authorities have seized assets worth approximately SGD 7.67 million from Latif; amongst recovered are:

One Rolex Daytona (leather strap) watch worth SGD 28,800
One Frank Muller watch worth SGD 7,000
One Frank Muller watch worth SGD 8,000
03 packs of 1,000 pcs of SGD 1,000 notes worth SGD 3 million
991 pcs of 1,000 pcs of SGD 1,000 notes worth SGD 991,000
400 pcs of 1,000 pcs of SGD 1,000 notes worth SGD 400,000
Sales balance proceeds of BMW M5 worth SGD 174,300
Sales balance proceeds of Mercedes Benz E43 worth SGD 276,200
Sales balance proceeds of Aston Martin DBS Coupe worth SGD 338,200
Sale proceeds from property at St Martin’s Dr worth SGD 670,000
Sale proceeds from property at Suites@Braddell worth SGD 557,200

Earlier coverage of developments by Manifold Times regarding the Shell MGO bunker heist can be found below:

Photo credit: Manifold Times
Published: 8 July 2025

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Manifold Times

Shell MGO bunker heist: Bunker clerk sentenced to 7.5 year in jail

Legal

Shell MGO bunker heist: Bunker clerk sentenced to 7.5 year in jail

Winding up

Singapore: Somerset Maritime Pte Ltd to undergo voluntary wind up, selects liquidator

Incident

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Legal

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