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.