By Carolyn Quek

CONVICTED Buddhist monk Ming Yi and his aide Raymond Yeung (below) will be sentenced next Saturday.

The sentencing, which was supposed to have taken place yesterday, was adjourned to allow the prosecution more time to study Ming Yi's mitigation, which was submitted late by his lawyers.

The defence team for the 47-year-old monk handed in the mitigation only on Thursday, three days later than the Monday deadline.

Ming Yi, and Yeung, 34, were found guilty a month ago in a highly publicised criminal trial.

It had been the most serious criminal conviction of a charity figure since irregularities were uncovered at the National Kidney Foundation in 2005.

Ming Yi and Yeung face up to seven years in jail for the most serious charge of conspiring to falsify the charity's accounts.

Ming Yi arriving at the Subordinate Courts yesterday. His mitigation was submitted late.

The former Ren Ci chief executive and Yeung had conspired to make an unauthorised loan of $50,000 on May 17, 2004, from Ren Ci Hospital's coffers, and had also given false information to the Commissioner of Charities (COC).

Ming Yi was also found guilty of misappropriating $50,000 and lying to the COC in an oral statement.

A Ministry of Health audit of the charities under its purview in 2007 led to the discovery of the missing sum of $50,000 from Ren Ci's books.

Yeung said he had borrowed the money to help a friend renovate his apartment in Hong Kong.

Both men's lawyers had since appealed against their convictions.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.