Malaysian admits receiving gold coin

Malaysian admits receiving gold coin

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): A Malaysian businessman has admitted that
he received but later misplaced a Standard Chartered Plc gold
coin worth US$10,000, reported by the British media to have gone
missing after being lent as a sample to a minister.

Steven Goh, who three years ago was in the delegation sent by
Standard Chartered's Hong Kong-based Mocatta division to meet the
minister, Ghani Othman, confirmed taking back the coin from Ghani
soon after their meeting at the end of 1991.

Goh, in a new twist to the saga, admitted in a statement to
Bernama news agency late Wednesday that he misplaced the coin two
years ago and would compensate the bank for the loss.

Goh's explanation might have cleared Ghani but appeared to
contradict remarks by Standard Chartered officials that the coin
was returned sometime in late 1991 and was "never missing."

But a spokeswoman for the bank yesterday insisted that
"everything is in order. What we are saying is to confirm Ghani
returned the coin and we will now deal with Goh as it is now an
internal matter."