Ban Ki-moon’s nephew pleads guilty in bribery case

NEW YORK: A nephew of former UN secretarygeneral Ban Kimoon pleaded guilty in a bribery case that grew from an attempt to sell a building complex in Vietnam for US$800mil (RM3.2bil).

Joo Hyunbahn, also known as Dennis Bahn, pleaded guilty to a conspiracy and a corruption count in a Manhattan federal court as part of a deal with prosecutors.

He has been free on bail for a year since he was charged with trying to pay US$2.5mil (RM10mil) in bribes to rescue the failed real estate deal for Landmark 72, a Vietnamese building complex that included a 72storey commercial building that was then the tallest in the Indochina peninsula.

During his plea, the 39yearold Bahn, of Tenafly, New Jersey, said he facilitated the bribe, and he knew what he was doing “was a bad act”.

Judge Edgardo Ramos set sentencing for June 29.

In a release, acting Assistant Attorney General John Cronan said Bahn’s bribery scheme and scams by others seeking real estate deals “seek to corruptly tilt the playing field to their advantage”.

“Bribery and corruption undermine fair competition and the rule of law,” Cronan said.

Manhattan US Attorney Geoffrey Berman said Bahn would have earned a multimilliondollar commission on the real estate deal.

The charges carry a potential sentence of up to 10 years.