Mohamad 'Bob' Hasan launches Canadian suit

Mohamad 'Bob' Hasan launches Canadian suit

VANCOUVER, Canada (AFP): A Indonesian businessman is suing his
Canadian associates for US$59 million over alleged bribes linked
to the construction of a pulp mill in Borneo.

The suit claims that Vancouver businessman John F. Huguet paid
$2 million in bribes six years ago to secure the $102 million
Kalimantan construction project which became one of the largest
of its kind in Asia.

In a statement filed in British Columbia's Supreme Court,
Indonesian tycoon Mohamad 'Bob' Hasan claims Huguet's group paid
$1 million in bribes to two of Hasan's people, Harold Helm and
Don Endicott.

Both Helm and Endicott were working for the Indonesian firm,
PT Kiani Kertas, which was in a joint venture to build the pulp
mill with Huguet's Commonwealth Construction of Vancouver.

The suit names Huguet, Helm, his wife Olive and John Bortnak
as the defendants.

Bortnak allegedly acted as a middle man while neither Endicott
nor the company Commonwealth Construction -- which was sold in a
1998 bankruptcy court auction -- were named in the suit.

The suit alleges that Huguet paid the bribes six years ago
after Kiani refused to award the contract to Commonwealth.

It was always intended by Huguet that this extra $2 million
would be used to pay the bribes, the suit alleges.

Huguet is now the president of Vancouver-based e-finance
company depot.com.

The suit claims that Huguet established a Singaporean
subsidiary, Commonwealth Asia Pacific Constructors Pte., to help
finalize the deal. Huguet denies the allegations which were first
reported by Canada Stockwatch.

"These are some pretty desperate measures," Huguet told
Stockwatch. "It is completely frivolous."

Kiani is also facing a $59 million arbitration suit from
Commonwealth Construction's U.S.-based parent company.

Hasan played a major role in the Bre-X mineral fiasco in 1997
which collapsed amid allegations of fraud, costing hundreds of
Canadian investors millions of dollars.