I am not perplexed but astounded by the simplicity with which JTB perceives the Adam Yong Abdullah case . Of course, it is not a crime for a buyer to pay inflated prices, that's just sheer carelessness or stupidity on the part of the buyer.

But it can be a crime for the persons who procure the buyer to do so when those persons are in a fiduciary position to the buyer and have been entrusted with the duty to advise the buyer and secure the best deal for the buyer.

This is 'criminal breach of trust' and is very clear-cut when the advisers benefit from the commissions made, almost certainly in secret. This is the case with the officers of the government agencies referred to by Adam. The officers in question were not brokers and were not entitled to receive commissions per se. They draw their salaries as officers of the government ministry or agencies in question and owe a duty to their employers to safeguard their interests.

I wonder if JTB would still feel the same way if he had placed himself in the shoes of an employer whose employee conspired with a broker to get JTB to buy something at a much inflated price.