RI national accused of bribing foreign officials

SINGAPURA. Radius Christanto, an Indonesian businessman accused of conspiracy to bribe foreign officials, is cooperating with Australian authorities and may be a witness for them, his lawyer has said.

"He's an extremely valuable witness, a star witness," Christanto's lawyer Hamidul Haq told a Singapore subordinate court today, which agreed the Indonesian, who isn't challenging his extradition to Australia, be surrendered.

At least nine former managers and employees at Note Printing Australia Ltd, the money-printing unit of the country's central bank, and Securency International Pty, the unit it formerly part owned, were charged in relation to the bribing of officials in Malaysia, Indonesia, Nepal and Vietnam from 1999 to 2004 to win banknote-printing contracts.

Australian authorities had acknowledged that statements Christanto gave them had been very helpful, Haq told the Singapore court today. Christanto, 64, has lived in Singapore since 1989, Bloomberg reported.

Australia raised penalties for foreign bribery offenses in 2010 to a maximum fine of A$1.7 million ($1.5 million) and as much as 10 years' imprisonment for an individual and A$17 million for corporations.