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When Clive Palmer was asked in the Federal Court about spending $250,000 to fly a mysterious woman from Kyrgyzstan to meet him in Singapore in April 2011, he testified it would have been for a Forbes conference.
However, Forbes has told The Weekend Australian it did not hold any conferences in Singapore in that year...
Mr Palmer ... gave the evidence under oath last month at a public examination into the collapse of his Queensland Nickel company, which failed early last year leaving 800 workers jobless and creditors $300 million out of pocket.
The founder of the now-dormant Palmer United Party was cross-examined by Walter Sofronoff QC, for liquidator FTI Consulting, about instructing Queensland Nickel to pay Evgenia Bednova $1m in November 2012...
Mr Palmer testified that he had met Ms Bednova in Bishkek, the Kyrgyzstan capital, when he was the world secretary-general of the World Leadership Alliance...
She acted as his companies’ representative in the central Asian country...
Mr Sofronoff: “Did you meet her in Singapore?”
Mr Palmer: “I could have … it was a Forbes conference in Singapore. And I did have a meeting with a number of people from our group from around Asia. She could have been there.”
Mr Sofronoff: “Why would she have been there?
Mr Palmer: “Well, it would be a commercial thing to discuss … business.”
The resources magnate was terse when asked about spending $250,000 to charter a jet to fly Ms Bednova from Bishkek to Singapore in April 2011, when she was the only passenger on the flight. Mr Sofronoff: “Do you recall she was the only passenger on that jet and you met her at the airport?”
Mr Palmer: “Is this the examinable affairs of the company?”
Mr Sofronoff: “She’s a woman you paid $1m to, Mr Palmer.”
Mr Palmer: “Not of …(Queensland Nickel’s) money … my personal money.”
About that $1 million - and the 36-year-old Ms Bednova:
Mr Palmer told the court he couldn’t recall exactly what each of his thousands of employees did when he was asked specific questions about Ms Bednova...
His involvement with her was “only business”, the court heard. Outside the hearing, he told media the $1 million “wasn’t for her (personally), it was to run the office over there, and to represent and look for mineral opportunities”.
The money paid to her was a massive increase to the annual average wage in Bishkek...
The Australian visited Ms Bednova in the Kyrgyzstan city of Bishtek and found her living a luxurious life in a double block worth $260,000 and a regular visitor of a sports centre frequented by Bishkek’s rich residents.
But since her name was mentioned in court, it seems Ms Bednova has done her best to stay anonymous.
She told her Facebook friends she was going to remove all her photographs online and then began deleting social media accounts.
She told The Australian she did not want to discuss her Queensland Nickel work.
“I do not have to talk to you,” she said, and then threatened to call the police.
https://www.heraldsun.com.au/blogs/andrew-bolt/clive-palmers-excuse-for-flying-ms-bednova-crashes/news-story/42fa9c2020ea73e64605364b8d1cb457 |