Scandal of the pastor and his pop star wife
Print Edition
A SCANDAL involving a Christian pastor, his singer wife, a glamorous financial executive and millions of dollars has gripped Singapore, with allegations of fraud and tantalizing glimpses into the expensive process of making a pop star.
Kong Hee, 47, pastor and founder of the 20,000-strong City Harvest Church, is on trial alongside five other church officials for an alleged scheme to siphon off S$24 million (US$19 million) to finance the singing career of his wife, Sun Ho.
The accused allegedly misappropriated another S$26 million to cover up the original diversion.
Ho, 41, an established Mandarin pop singer who co-founded the church with her husband in 1989, moved to Los Angeles in 2009 to launch an English-language singing career before the scandal scuttled her ambitions.
She does not face any charges herself, appearing stoically with her husband for his court appearances as her music videos continue to draw hits on YouTube.
The video for her song “China Wine” — in which she dances alongside the rapper Wyclef Jean — has attracted more than one million views so far.
In another video she plays a skimpily-clad Asian wife who calls herself a geisha and sings about killing her African-American husband, played by the male supermodel Tyson Beckford.
Less than Beyonce
Ho also posed for numerous pictures at exclusive events with American celebrities as part of her image-building campaign.
Evidence reportedly produced in court showed that the church had earmarked more than US$10 million as its marketing budget — “in line with Shakira’s marketing budget and less than the budget for Beyonce” — to boost her Hollywood foray.
The Straits Times said the documents also showed more than US$1.6 million was spent on production fees for Wyclef Jean.
The church has defended Ho’s attempt to become an international star as part of a “crossover” campaign to spread God’s message.
But prosecutors say Kong and his subordinates channeled money for a church building fund into sham bonds to finance Ho’s career.
All six accused deny the charges.
The trial, which resumes in January, created a buzz in the mainstream press and on social media thanks to the church’s photogenic former financial manager, Serina Wee, a 36-year-old mother of three whose stylish courtroom outfits have turned her into a fashion icon.
Wee faces six charges of criminal breach of trust for her role in the alleged scam, and four for falsifying accounts.
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