I was told it was a matter for LKY: David Gerald on infamous Clob saga

Sias founder recounts eventful journey from legal sector to fighting for ordinary investors.

- Wong Kim Hoh

After nearly two decades on the run, former Singaporean tycoon Ng Teck Lee, 58, and his wife Thor Chwee Hwa, 55, were arrested in Malaysia in early December. Embroiled in a multimillion-dollar embezzlement scandal, the couple had been fugitives since 2005.

Investor advocate David Gerald, who worked tirelessly to help save their company on the verge of collapse, has hailed the arrests as a long-overdue victory for justice.

"I'm happy they've been caught. Justice has to be done, and a case must be brought against them," he says.

Ng was once the high-flying CEO and president of Citiraya Industries, a publicly listed company specialising in recycling and recovering precious metals from electronic waste. It had been poised to become a regional leader in e-waste management until Ng's alleged schemes were exposed.

Instead of processing the scrap to extract precious metals, he allegedly sold it overseas, pocketing an estimated US$51 million. When the scandal broke, the company's shares were suspended.

Ng and his wife, who was reportedly complicit in the scheme, fled Singapore, leaving behind devastated investors and a company on the brink of collapse.

Worried investors turned to Mr Gerald, founder of the Securities Investors Association (Singapore), or Sias, for answers and support.

Established in 1999, Sias had become a lifeline for retail investors navigating corporate crises.

For several months, Mr Gerald worked closely with Citiraya's independent directors and advisers to address shareholder concerns and stabilise the company by seeking answers from investigators, regulators and the Singapore Exchange. The company was eventually revived under a new name, Centillion Environment & Recycling Limited, in 2006.

When asked about the arrests, Mr Gerald, 80, says: "If you've wronged your fellow citizens – your shareholders who trusted you – and then gone into hiding, how long do you think you can run?"