Singapore Police Probes Premier’s Brother Over Alleged Lying

Singapore police are investigating Lee Hsien Yang, the estranged brother of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, for allegedly giving false evidence over the handling of their late father’s will.

(Bloomberg) — Singapore police are investigating Lee Hsien Yang, the estranged brother of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, for allegedly giving false evidence over the handling of their late father’s will.

Hsien Yang and his wife Lee Suet Fern refused to attend a police interview and have since left Singapore, Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean said in a written reply to parliament on Thursday. The couple were found in 2020 to have lied under oath during disciplinary proceedings against the wife related to the last will of Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father of modern Singapore.

“The persecution of my family by the Singapore authorities continues unabated,” Hsien Yang said in a Facebook post. 

Discord in the Lee family has simmered for years since the patriach’s death in 2015. The dispute centers on whether 38 Oxley Road should be demolished and the handling of Lee Kuan Yew’s will. The colonial-era bungalow near Singapore’s Orchard Road shopping belt was where he lived for most of his 91 years. 

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Suet Fern was suspended for 15 months from practicing law in 2020. She said at the time she disagreed with the punishment for professional misconduct in her handling of the will.

Their refusal to participate in the police investigation raises questions, Teo said. “If they maintain their innocence, the investigation will give them the chance to vindicate themselves.”

(Adds Hsien Yang’s comment in third paragraph.)

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