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SCMP Reporter

CARRIAN'S former financial director yesterday admitted that he believed George Tan had engaged in dishonest business practices in 1983.

  Rod Bell denied he was now involved in any business deals with Tan.

  He was being cross-examined by Richard Field QC, for the liquidators of Carrian Investments Ltd (CIL), who are suing Price Waterhouse for more than $2 billion for negligence and breach of contract with regard to CIL's accounts.

  Mr Bell said he neither knew nor suspected Tan, the chairman of the Carrian group, was engaged in dishonest business practices while he worked for Carrian between 1981 and 1983 when the company collapsed.

  However, in his last month at Carrian or after he left, he came to believe Tan had engaged in dishonest business practices over the sale of Union Bank shares.

  On this transaction, Price Waterhouse accept that Carrian's management engaged in false accounting by showing a deposit received when it had not been, the court heard.

  Mr Field then suggested that despite this conclusion, since Mr Bell had returned to Hong Kong in mid-1991, he had business connections with Tan's relatives.

  The court has heard that Mr Bell was a partner in Price Waterhouse until 1981 when he joined Carrian at Tan's request as group financial director.

  Mr Bell denied knowing that George Tan's daughter, Tan Wan-ling, has a third shareholding in a company which holds a 40 per cent share in Mr Bell's own company, Joint Sincerity.

  He also denied knowing that in a 'fantastic coincidence' the phone number for Joint Sincerity was also the listed phone number for Widelines Investments Ltd, a company in which Tan's daughter is a shareholder; and said he had 'no idea' how it could have got the same phone number.

  He denied knowing that Widelines' directors were Tan's two daughters and his wife, Kao Keng-wan, although he knew Kao was Tan's wife's family name.

  Mr Bell, who now works for Hong Kong Macau Holdings, said Tan had no direct connection with the company, as far as he knew, although he said Tan knew the chairman. He denied knowledge of any transactions between Tan and the company.

  Mr Field suggested that the interlocking share relationships indicated Mr Bell was continuing a business relationship with him. Mr Bell said this was incorrect.

  He maintained his denials when Mr Field read a 1992 South China Morning Post article to the court which said Tan and Mr Bell both attended a meeting about the sale of Nine Queen's Road Central.

  Tan was said to have helped broker the sale to a consortium in which Hong Kong Macau Holdings was involved.

  Mr Bell agreed he went to the meeting, but said he did not recall what was discussed. It could have been a social meeting, he said.

  He said he had played no role in the transaction.

  Mr Bell was given immunity from prosecution during the criminal trial in which two Price Waterhouse staff were tried together with George Tan and others for conspiring to defraud shareholders of CIL.

   All the defendants were acquitted.

  Mr Bell will continue his evidence on Monday.



Ex-Carrian boss denies Tan links