Tussle over $40 million assets: Widow breaks her silence, wants full control of assets back

MADAM Chung Khin Chun, the wealthy widow at the heart of the saga involving a former China tour guide, has finally broken her silence.

The 87-year-old told The Straits Times yesterday that she now wants back full control of her assets worth an estimated $40 million.

This was why she applied to the Office of the Public Guardian to revoke the Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) she gave Mr Yang Yin in 2012.

Her lawyer announced this development at a press conference on Tuesday.

Madam Chung, whose husband, Dr Chou Sip King, died in 2007, has no children.

The saga has generated considerable public interest since it was first reported on Sept 3. The day before, her niece Hedy Mok forced Mr Yang's wife and two children out of her aunt's sprawling $30 million bungalow in Gerald Crescent, where they had been living for the last year.

Mr Yang, who was overseas at the time, had moved in with Madam Chung in 2009, a year after acting as her private tour guide during a holiday in China.

Since then, it has been revealed that Ms Mok has started court proceedings to strip Mr Yang of the 2012 LPA, after accusing him of manipulating her aunt.

She is also suing him for breaching his duty as a guardian under the LPA.

When Madam Chung was asked about her relationship with Mr Yang yesterday, she said she could not remember much of what happened before.

It is believed that in 2010, she willed her assets to the man.

She was diagnosed with dementia this year, but a psychiatric assessment last week found that she has the mental capacity to revoke the LPA.

These days, Madam Chung, a retired physiotherapist who ran her own clinic at People's Park, wakes up at 5am and then reads the papers.

She admitted to being dismayed at seeing all the reports on her case. "I don't like it."

She also said she misses her Gerald Crescent bungalow, where she had been living since the 1960s - especially the large garden and the swimming pool where she used to swim every day.

She hoped the issues would be resolved - "the sooner, the better".

Meanwhile, Mr Yang, who last week was arrested for suspected criminal breach of trust, has told Chinese evening daily Shin Min Daily News that he will release a public statement soon.

kcarolyn@sph.com.sg

tohyc@sph.com.sg

This article was first published on September 26, 2014.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.