SINGAPORE: A businessman who ordered a hit on the lover of his mistress in 2016 was sentenced to six years' jail on Tuesday (May 21).



Lim Hong Liang, 55, was found guilty last month of one count of conspiring to cause grievous hurt to Mr Joshua Koh Kian Yong, 35.



Lim was the boyfriend of former Miss Mermaid, 28-year-old Audrey Chen Ying Fang, paying her a salary for an administration role in his logistics company for a job she did not turn up for.

He lavished gifts on her including a car, a renovated condominium unit and the services of a maid.

However, when he found out that Ms Chen had been dating Mr Koh, Lim wanted to teach the man a lesson.

The father of three commissioned hitmen to attack Mr Koh, who was himself married to a Thai woman.



He paid them S$5,000 to scar Mr Koh's face. Two attacks on Mr Koh in April 2016 left him with fractures in his nose, lacerations over his lips, arm and bruises on his face.

After the first attack, Ms Chen received voice messages from Lim, where he said he had found out that she had "brought Joshua back home to sleep".

"What you did, was it right or wrong? You bring a man back to sleep when I go overseas. What you did was it right or wrong? I provided you (with) everything," Lim said in Mandarin.

Lim's lawyer, N Sreenivasan, had argued that there was no evidence on who suggested the slashing, and that it was "not clear that Lim approved of the slashing".

However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Tan Wen Hsien said that even though Lim did not suggest the slashing, he gave the men approval and the financial means, "and basically gave them free rein".

Lim's co-accused - 48-year-old mover Ong Hock Chye - was sentenced to five-and-a-half years' jail and six strokes of the cane.

He had suggested slashing Mr Koh's face, in contrast to Lim's original wish to have the men break Mr Koh's hands and legs.

Ong, who was unrepresented, told the judge that the sentence of six years' jail the prosecution was asking for was "very unfair to me" and said he had been approached by Lim's nephew.



District Judge Chay Yuen Fatt agreed with the prosecution saying that Ong had a greater role than Lim's nephew in the plot.

Seven men were taken to court over this case, with five of them already dealt with, receiving sentences of up to 14-and-a-half years' jail, and three of them receiving caning.



Both Ong and Lim intend to appeal.