Starburst's bosses interviewed in corruption probe; shares plunge 68%

SHARES of Starburst Holdings, which designs and installs anti-ricochet ballistic protection systems, slid on Monday after it disclosed that its co-founders are out on bail amid a probe by Singapore's anti-corruption watchdog.

The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) last Thursday interviewed executive chairman Edward Lim Chin Wah, managing director Yap Tin Foo, chief financial officer (CFO) Wu Guangyi, and senior project manager Josiah Lawrence Ng Eng Long.

This was in relation to the Catalist-listed firm's wholly-owned subsidiary Starburst Engineering.

Mr Lim, Mr Yap and Mr Ng are out on bail, said Starburst in a bourse filing on Sunday night. It did not state the CFO's status in relation to the probe.

Mr Yap's passport has been retained, while Mr Ng's passport has been requested to be provided on Monday.

As the CPIB investigation is ongoing, the board said it is unable to provide further details at this time.

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The board, with Mr Lim and Mr Yap recusing themselves, believes that the three men placed on bail should continue with their responsibilities and duties in the operation of the group's businesses.

This is so as to ensure business continuity, it added. The board will reassess its position where appropriate, in due course.

Starburst noted that the CPIB investigation is not related to the group's current projects, and accordingly does not affect the group's business and operations.

The Singapore-based group's customers include law enforcement, military, security agencies and civil authorities in South-east Asia and the Middle East, according to its website.

Starburst Engineering in March clinched a S$40.9 million contract - the group's biggest to date - to build a firearms training facility in South-east Asia over two years.

In July, the subsidiary also bagged a S$13.1 million contract to upgrade a tactical training mock-up facility in South-east Asia, by designing, supplying and installing ballistic protection works.

Mr Lim and Mr Yap co-founded the Starburst business in 1999, and have been instrumental in its development and growth. They are controlling shareholders of the company, owning more than 66 per cent of Starburst combined, according to Shareinvestor data.

Last Thursday, shares of Starburst fell 1.2 per cent or 0.5 Singapore cent to close at 40 cents. They tumbled further on Friday, losing 6.3 per cent or 2.5 cents to end at 37.5 cents.

On Monday, the counter sank as much as 68 per cent to 12 cents at around 9.15am, according to Shareinvestor data. It was trading at 15 cents as at 10.55am, down 60 per cent or 22.5 cents from the previous close. About 9.4 million shares had changed hands by then.