Singaporean wanted by US for violating North Korea sanctions is in Singapore: police
- US State Department on Thursday offered US$5 million for information on Kwek Kee Seng, blaming him for numerous fuel deliveries to North Korea
- Reward comes as the US urges strict enforcement of UN sanctions on North Korea after it launched a volley of missiles
A Singaporean businessman wanted by the United States for violating sanctions on North Korea is currently in the city state where he is under investigation, the Singapore police said.
In a statement issued late on Saturday, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said they have sought clarification from their US counterparts over the reward as they have kept them informed about the ongoing probe by local authorities.
The US State Department on Thursday offered US$5 million for information on businessman Kwek Kee Seng, blaming him for numerous fuel deliveries to North Korea and ship-to-ship transfers as well as money laundering through front companies.
Federal prosecutors in New York in 2021 issued an arrest warrant for Kwek, a year after one of his oil tankers, the M/T Courageous, was seized by Cambodia on a US request over purported sanctions violations.
Kwek, 62, owns the Swanseas Port Services shipping company based in the city state.
02:44
Raising the stakes: How North Korea became a nuclear state
The State Department’s Rewards for Justice programme had said his exact location was not known and that he has also been identified as being in North Korea, Cambodia, Taiwan and Thailand as well as Cameroon and the tiny Caribbean nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis.
