Businessman Teo Boon Leng no longer faces a capital charge of murdering a man whose decomposed body was found in a trolley bag floating in the sea off Sentosa.

The prosecution on Wednesday applied for a discharge not amounting to an acquittal for the 45-year-old. But his lawyers wanted a full acquittal.

Teo had been in remand since April last year for the alleged murder of Mr Wong Teck Siong, 28, at the upmarket Caribbean At Keppel Bay condominium in Keppel Bay Drive between April 1 and 16 last year.

Mr Wong's body - which was clothed but carried no identification papers - was discovered on April 16 last year after two foreign construction workers spotted the trolley bag floating in the water off a building site at Resorts World Sentosa integrated resort.

District Judge Lim Tse Haw reserved his decision on whether to grant Teo a discharge not amounting to an acquittal or full acquittal after hearing arguments from both sides.

Meanwhile, the prosecution tendered 15 new charges against Teo.

Among his charges are for using Mr Wong's mobile phone to transmit false messages; depositing the trolley bag containing Mr Wong's corpse at the sea; having drug utensils and allowing the premises to be used by Mr Wong for drug-taking; failing to report Mr Wong's death to a police officer as soon as practicable; and removing the body from the premises when the death was reportable under the Coroner's Act.

Bail of $50,000 was offered. Teo will be back in court next Wednesday.

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