Diplomat bitten by graft charges over pineapple tarts

(Reuters): First it was sex, then casinos. Now, a Singapore diplomat has been charged with inflating the number of pineapple tarts and bottles of wine carried on official visits in the latest corruption case to hit the squeaky clean city-state. Lim Cheng Hoe, former chief of protocol at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, allegedly overbilled authorities by around $71,100 by overstating the amount of gifts bought for official purposes between 2008 and 2012. Lim faces 60 charges and could be jailed for up to three years on each charge if found guilty. Pineapple tarts are bite-sized snacks popular in many Asian countries. The versions favored in Singapore are open-faced buttery pastries topped with sweet pineapple jam.

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