KUALA LUMPUR – A Melbourne businessman has avoided jail after facilitating an unlawful $3.4 million payment to Malaysian intermediaries during a property sale to the Malaysian government.
Boon “Dennis” Teen, 72, appeared before the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday, where Judge Michael O’Connell ruled that the case’s unique circumstances and Teen’s personal situation warranted a non-custodial sentence, News.com.au reported.
The Malaysian-born community leader received a 21-month suspended jail term after pleading guilty to false accounting.
The court heard that Teen and his associates had acquired land in Caulfield, Melbourne, to develop student accommodation. Facing financial struggles, he sought a buyer, and by October 2012, Mara agreed to purchase the property for $17.85 million.
In February 2013, intermediaries acting for Mara proposed an “internal agreement” to acquire it for AUD$22.6 million (RM61.7million), requiring a AUD$4.75 million (RM13.32mil) payment to them. Following the sale’s completion in March 2013, Teen helped create fraudulent invoices to disguise the payment as a business expense.
Judge O’Connell stated that $3.4 million of the amount had no legal basis and was effectively a “kickback.”
“You or your company did not receive any benefit from the inflated amount paid for by the Malaysian government,” he said. “This was not a victimless crime, the people of Malaysia lost $3.4 million.”
The judge noted that Teen had been in a vulnerable position due to cashflow issues and construction delays.
“Your approach had been entirely legitimate,” he said. “The internal agreement was put to you when you were in a vulnerable position having been strung along for many months.”
The court also heard that 10 personal references described Teen as a hardworking and generous community leader. Judge O’Connell considered the 12-year gap since the offence and Teen’s fragile health as mitigating factors.
Teen walked free, with the judge warning that any further offences within 21 months could activate the suspended sentence. “Yes, sir,” Teen replied.
The case is part of a broader scandal involving Mara Inc’s acquisitions in Australia and the UK, scrutinised by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC).
In November last year, PAC identified several properties purchased at inflated prices in 2013 and 2014, including Dudley International House, 51 Queen Street, and 333 Exhibition Street in Melbourne, as well as Beaumont House in London.
PAC chairman Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin revealed that these acquisitions were made without the finance ministry’s approval, which was later granted retrospectively.
“The finance ministry did not authorise these purchases, but the rural and regional development ministry appealed the matter, which was brought to the economic council which then approved it in 2013,” she said.
She confirmed that the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) had investigated the overvalued properties, with the case still in court.
PAC has recommended that MARA Inc obtain prior finance ministry approval for all future investments to prevent similar controversies.
In 2021 and 2022, former Mara Inc chairman Datuk Mohammad Lan Allanipleaded not guilty to 24 charges of corruption and money laundering over the controversial property purchases in Melbourne.
– February 11, 2025