Wednesday, January 22, 2014

British businessman Anton Casey in Singapore forced to issue apology after ...

Anton Casey forced to apologise after a public backlash He talked on Facebook about 'the stench of public transport' Mr Casey is married to former beauty queen Bernice Wong

By Derek Milroy


PUBLISHED: 06:22 EST, 22 January 2014 | UPDATED: 07:05 EST, 22 January 2014


A British businessman has received death threats after calling Singapore commuters poor people on Facebook.


Wealth manager Anton Casey was forced to apologise for his remarks after a public backlash.


Mr Casey, who is married to former Miss Singapore Universe Bernice Wong, issued a statement through a PR firm.


He said: 'I deeply regret having offended and disrespected the people of Singapore. I have the highest respect and regard for Singapore and the good people of Singapore; this is my home.'


However, the highly-respected businessman is being vilified for some of his comments on Facebook which have surfaced on various Singaporean websites and forums.


One posting shows a photo of his son sitting on an MRT train, the Singaporean public transport train.


Mr Casey said: 'Daddy where is your car and who are all these poor people?'


Another photo shows is son in his Porsche, Mr Casey said in the post: 'Ahhhhhhhhh reunited with my baby. Normal service can resume, once I have washed the stench of public transport off me...!'


He also calls a Singaporean male cabbie a 'retard' for wearing arm warmers and mittens and having a towel on his lap.


He added: 'After 11 years of residency, I am still trying to understand THESE people!'


Mr Casey, who is believed to be staying in Sentosa Cove, said that due to a 'security breach' of his personal Facebook page and the misuse of an old video by unknown sources, his family, especially his five-year-old son, 'suffered extreme emotional and verbal abuse online'.


However, netizens who read the posts and video reacted negatively, with many calling the expatriate arrogant and urging him and his family to leave Singapore.


'It must be made extremely clear that a YouTube video of me, with my son in the background, was not posted in response to any recent events. This video was made weeks prior and has been misused to portray me as unrepentant.'


Mr Casey added that police investigations were ongoing into the matter, including a number of death threats that his family have received.


Mr Casey said: 'My son is an innocent party to this unfortunate and extremely stressful situation. I wish for nothing more than to be forgiven for my poor judgement and given a second chance to rebuild the trust people have had in me as a resident of this wonderful country.'


One male expatriate, who knows Mr Casey and his family, insisted that he has a very British sense of humour, which can be very scathing.


'However, it can cross lines and it did cross lines. I had to defriend him on Facebook because I couldn't stand the rubbish he was writing about all sorts of people. However, his wife and son were sweet.'



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