Denmark’s state prosecutor for serious economic and international crime, Niels Vejlby Hansen announced on Thursday 13 July 2017 that the former head of Dynamic Oil Trading in Singapore, Lars Moller, has been charged with fraud of over 800 mill DKK – equivalent to 169 mill. SGD – which led to the unexpected bankruptcy of the OW Bunker mother company in Denmark back in 2014.
The state prosecutor also announced that he had not been able to substantiate that any other in the mother company OW Bunker A/S had committed criminal fraud or neglect.
The criminal charge is against Lars Moller for having extended credit to a Singaporean company, Tankoil Marine Services, which over 18 months had grown to 800 mill. DKK – equivalent to 169 mill. SGD. Together with other outstanding credits, the Singapore company was owed a total of $329m in gross receivables when it collapsed in November 2014 and in a matter of days brought the mother company down along with it.
Back in 2013, a year before the bankruptcy and a year after the establishment in 2012 of Dynamic Oil Trading in Singapore, Lars Moller told media that in his opinion, the bunker sector was entering a period of Darwinism, where being able to offer the best credit terms would be the decisive factor. Companies who had not got the financial strength to do it, may not survive.
Lars Moller’s lawyer, Arvid Andersen, has previously told Danish media that there had been no criminal activity in his client’s subsidiary.
The case will initially be heard at the court in the provincial town of Aalborg in Denmark, but is likely to go all the way to the supreme court.
