Ah nehs...

[LITTLEREDDOT]

12 weeks' jail for man who sent sex video of himself and his girlfriend to her cousin​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Dec 9, 2021

SINGAPORE - A man who recorded a video of himself having sex with his then girlfriend shared the clip with her cousin following a tiff.
The offender also threatened to circulate the video online and make it go viral if the victim did not contact him.
The 31-year-old Bangladeshi man was on Thursday (Dec 9) sentenced to 12 weeks' jail after he pleaded guilty to intentionally distributing a woman's intimate recording without her consent.
He cannot be named owing to a gag order to protect the identity of the victim.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Melissa Lee said the pair had been in a romantic relationship since 2018.
They had sexual intercourse and the man used his mobile phone to record the act.

The court heard that the victim initially allowed him to do so but later told him to get rid of the clip.
He ignored her request but lied to her, claiming that he had deleted the recording.
Some time around Sept 20 this year, the couple had a dispute over monetary and relationship issues.
She then blocked him on messaging platform WhatsApp.
At around 4.40pm on Sept 26, he sent the clip to her cousin despite knowing that it would cause the victim to feel humiliated.
DPP Lee said: "The accused did so because he wanted to compel the victim to speak to him as the victim had blocked him on... WhatsApp."
The victim alerted the police the next day.
In sentencing the man on Thursday, District Judge Marvin Bay said that this case involved an "egregious breach of trust" as the victim had initially allowed the man to record the video.
The judge added: "Even if the accused had been motivated by anger, what he did was utterly perverse and deeply wrong.

"It is deeply wrong and perverse to weaponise an intimate video taken in a moment of vulnerability, mobilising it as a means to keep a failing relationship alive."
For intentionally distributing a woman's intimate recording without her consent, an offender can be jailed for up to five years, fined, caned or receive any combination of such punishments.

 

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Woman gets 16 months' jail for fraudulent Covid-19 grant claim, among other crimes​

Rajagopal Malini forged a termination letter from the condominium she worked at.PHOTO: SHIN MIN DAILY NEWS

Jean Iau

Dec 10, 2021


SINGAPORE - In an attempt to claim money from the Covid-19 Support Grant, the 48-year-old administrative officer forged a termination letter from the condominium she worked at.
Rajagopal Malini also took cash given to her by residents for their maintenance fees.
Separately, in September last year, she went on a shopping spree with her children and their friends using a stolen credit card.
For her spate of offences that occurred between July and September last year, Rajagopal was sentenced to 16 months' jail on Friday (Dec 10), with District Judge Marvin Bay noting that her an attempt to cheat the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) would have been at expense of taxpayers' money.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Stacey Fernandez told the court that Rajagopal's forged letter, dated Aug 1, 2020, bore the Euphony Gardens condominium letterhead as she had access to the letterhead on her office computer, which she used to write notices and correspondences with the condo's residents.
She was employed at the time by Colliers International Consultancy & Valuation, which was managing Euphony Gardens.

On the online application for the grant, she used a fake name for the contact person and provided her own office number in case someone called to verify the details.
Her forgery was discovered when the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) called the condominium manager and he informed them that the contents of the termination letter were false.
The condominium manager also made a police report in October saying that Rajagopal had pocketed cash she was tasked to collect for the condominium's Management Corporation Strata Title fees.
She took more than $4,000 in total and was found out when a resident received a notice that he failed to make payment even though he had handed it to Rajagopal.
She, along with her children and their friends, also bought more than $13,500 worth of items including mobile phones and gift cards using a stolen credit card.
The card had been taken from the in-vehicle unit of a motorcycle by her son's friends - two boys, aged 13 and 14.
Rajagopal, who knew the card belonged to someone else, agreed to see if it would work. She went to the 7-Eleven near Block 106 Hougang Ave 1 with her daughters and her children's friends and bought items including cigarettes, liquor and Zalora gift cards totalling $1,142.20.
She was the only adult in the group, which then went to Nex for a shopping spree where they spent about $12,400 at stores including Sephora, Planet Telcoms and G-Shock Casio on handphones, watches, shoes, among other things.

Rajagopal was represented by lawyer Bozy Lu, who said her client went on the illicit shopping spree because she wanted to "shower her children with love".
The court heard that her family was not well off and she wanted to buy things for herself and her family.
Rajagopal's children and their friends cannot be named as they are under 18 years of age.

 

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Couple sent maid they hired illegally back home after authorities came knocking​

Samuel Devaraj

DEC 17, 2021


SINGAPORE - His family was barred by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) from hiring maids after his wife assaulted a domestic worker in 2014, but he circumvented the rules by getting a third party to do it for them.
When the authorities learnt of the ruse, Syed Mohamed Peeran Syed Ameer Hamza and his wife, Sabah Parveen, had the maid sent back to Indonesia.
Sabah, 37, and Syed, 41, were on Friday (Dec 17) convicted over their roles in intentionally obstructing the course of justice.
Syed was also convicted over false declarations made to get the maid to work for the family. The Singaporean was sentenced to 36 weeks' jail in total.
Sabah was sentenced to three days' jail.
The court heard that Sabah, an Indian national and Singapore permanent resident, was charged in 2014 with three counts of voluntarily causing hurt against her family's domestic worker.
Her household was then placed on an MOM blacklist, which temporarily barred them from hiring maids.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Chong Kee En told the court that in July 2018, Syed enlisted the help of Mr Suresh Murugaiyan to hire a maid.
Mr Suresh is a director of a company where Syed is a shareholder, and an employee in another company where Syed is a director.
Mr Suresh falsely indicated in MOM's online Work Pass System that he would be the employer of one Ms Aminah, a maid from Indonesia. She goes by one name.


But it was Syed's phone number and e-mail that were submitted in the application, so that the ministry would contact him when looking for the maid's employer.
The system then generated an in-principle approval.
On July 17, 2018, Ms Aminah arrived in Singapore and started working for the couple. They have two young children.
On Aug 9 that year, Mr Suresh falsely submitted Work Permit declaration forms, following Syed's persuasion, in order to get Ms Aminah a work pass.

The application was approved five days later.
After being paid for her first three months of work, Ms Aminah was not given her salary for at least two months.
On Jan 24, 2019, she shared her problems with a Filipina domestic helper, who gave her the number to the Centre for Domestic Employees.
The centre then related the information to MOM, which notified the police the same day.
Police officers visited the couple's home and indicated that someone had alerted MOM to a case of maid abuse.
DPP Chong said: "(Syed) insisted that there were no domestic workers in his employment at the material time, that there was no maid at the unit, and that the only persons staying at the unit were his family members."
In fact, Syed had instructed Ms Aminah to hide in the master bedroom ensuite.

After the officers left, he bought an air ticket for the maid and she left for Indonesia that very night.
Police and MOM learnt the next day that Mr Suresh was not in fact hiring Ms Aminah, and that she had been working at the couple's home.
They interviewed the couple the following day after which Syed attempted to leave Singapore but was stopped at the airport.
His lawyer Rachel Soh said her client had been based in Hong Kong when he hired the maid and did so as he was motivated by a "desire to provide support for his wife and children".
Sabah's lawyer Jeremy Pereira said his client was only aware that an offence had been committed when the police came knocking.
For intentionally obstructing the course of justice, the couple could have each been jailed for seven years, fined or both.
Syed could have been jailed for two years, fined $20,000 or both for getting Mr Suresh to furnish false information.

 

[nightsafari]

uh... while it would be fair to say that the standard has backslid a little and you can complain, it's still better than a whole bunch of other countries.

Just look at the neighbouring countries. I don't want to deal with any of them. Even the US has terrible civil service. The most well-known one is California DMV.

 

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Repeat offender jailed after verbally abusing cop and bus driver while drunk in separate incidents​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent


DEC 27, 2021


SINGAPORE - A man who was fined $1,000 late last year after he caused annoyance to others while drunk, reoffended just months later.
In separate incidents this year, he used vulgar language to verbally abuse a police officer as well as a bus driver when he was drunk .
Moorthy Nagappan, now 65, was on Monday (Dec 27) sentenced to five weeks' jail after he pleaded guilty to three harassment charges and one count of causing annoyance to others while drunk in a public place.
The Singaporean cleaner was drunk when he boarded bus service 147 near Tekka Market in Little India at around 7pm on March 28 this year. He was seen not wearing his mask properly.
When the driver reminded him to wear it properly, Moorthy became unhappy and hurled vulgarities at the 33-year-old man.
State Prosecuting Officer (SPO) Raj Kishore Rai said that the police were alerted about 15 minutes later.
Court documents did not disclose what happened next but Moorthy was found to be drunk again near Tekka Market two months later on May 29.

The police were alerted at around 1pm after he was seen shouting and hurling obscenities at passers-by.
Sergeant Jayson Chong Jun Kit, 25, and his colleagues arrived at the scene and Moorthy was advised to leave the premises.
The SPO told the court: "Sgt Chong and his colleagues then escorted the accused to ensure that he left the premises.
"While the accused was at the bus stop along Serangoon Road in front of Tekka Market, the accused continued to cause annoyance by raising his voice at one of the police officers around him. He then got more agitated and cursed at the police officer."
Moorthy was arrested soon after, the court heard.
He was sitting in the back seat of a police vehicle going towards the Police Cantonment Complex when he abused Sgt Chong with vulgar language and threatened to kill the officer.
Moorthy was undergoing a medical assessment later that day to ensure that he was fit for detention at the Central Police Division when he made an obscene hand gesture at another policeman, Special Constable Chezven Cheah Sin Shen, 20.
For each count of harassment, an offender can be jailed for up to a year and fined up to $5,000.

 

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Jail for man who falsely stated cops had 'role to play' in purported theft of $8,000 cash​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

DEC 31, 2021

SINGAPORE - A man, who was woken up by the presence of two police officers in his home on Dec 12, later claimed that his monies totalling $8,000 had gone missing and that the pair "had a role to play" for their loss.
It turned out that he was never in possession of the amount in the first place.
Vinesh Kumar Ganesan, 33, maintained his lie to an investigation officer later that day.
The Malaysian finally admitted to the authorities on Dec 13 that he had lied.
Deputy Public Prosecutor R. Arvindren said: "He claimed that he was drunk, tired and frustrated for being woken up... which led to the false statements being given by the accused."
Separately, Vinesh also committed offences including riding a motorcycle while under the influence of alcohol and doing so without a licence.
On Friday (Dec 31), he was sentenced to four weeks' jail and a fine of $6,800.

He was disqualified from operating all classes of vehicles in Singapore for three years.
He pleaded guilty to four charges, including giving false information to a public servant and riding a motorcycle while under the influence of alcohol.
In the wee hours of Dec 12 this year, two police officers went to Vinesh's home, responding to a case of assault as his roommate had called for assistance.


Court documents do not disclose the address and details about the assault.
Vinesh was woken up by the pair's presence at around 3.30am.
The DPP said: "(He) was looking for his bag where he had kept his identification card but was unable to locate his bag.
"A while later, one of the two police officers found the said bag in another bedroom and handed it over to the accused. The accused checked his bag and told the two police officers that his cash amounting to $8,000 was missing."

About three hours later, Vinesh lodged a report at the Pasir Ris Neighbourhood Police Centre, alleging that either the two police officers or his roommate "had a role to play" in stealing the cash.
Following an investigation, he finally admitted to his lies the next day.
In an unrelated case, the court heard that he drank two cans of beer in Aliwal Street near Beach Road at around 6pm on Aug 11 this year, before he rode a friend's motorcycle to a Bussorah Street restaurant nearby.
A dispute later took place and the police were alerted.
The DPP said: "(A police officer) then interviewed the accused and he informed that he had wanted to look for a friend by the name of 'Dinesh' but the staff of the restaurant told him that 'Dinesh' was not working.
"While interviewing the accused, the (officer) observed the accused reeked of alcohol."

A breathalyser test was conducted on Vinesh and he failed it.
He was taken to the Police Cantonment Complex for another test and he was found to have 72 micrograms of alcohol in 100ml of breath.
This was more than double the prescribed limit of 35mcg of alcohol in the same amount of breath.
For giving false information to a public servant, an offender can be jailed for up to two years and fined.

 

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Jail for three men linked to student transnational money mule syndicate​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Jan 5, 2022

SINGAPORE - Three men who initially came to Singapore to study later broke the law when they became involved with a student transnational money mule syndicate.
On Wednesday (Jan 5), Nandi Niladri, 24, was given the stiffest sentence of 18 months' jail after he pleaded guilty to three charges under the Payment Services Act and one count of obstructing the course of justice. He had dealt with cash totalling $30,500.
Another man, Akash Deep Singh, 23, who dealt with cash totalling more than $118,000, pleaded guilty to three charges, including an offence under the Act, and was sentenced to a year in jail.
The third offender, Giri Debjit, 24, was sentenced to seven months' jail after he pleaded guilty to two charges, including an offence under the Act. He had received multiple inward transfers totalling more than $61,000.
They were the last offenders linked to the case to be dealt with in court.
Their accomplices, including Tirth Singh, 22; Tenzing Ugyen Lama Sherpa, 23; Mukherjee Sukanya, 24; and Jaspreet Singh, 26, were dealt with in court earlier.
All are Indian nationals.

According to an earlier statement from the Singapore Police Force, the group faced charges linked to the retention of proceeds by a transnational criminal syndicate that was perpetrating "tech support scams".
Court documents do not state if the scammers have been dealt with in court.
Giri and Nandi came to Singapore to study in 2019, while Akash arrived the following year. Court documents do not disclose details of their schools.


The three men later shared a rented home with Mukherjee and Jaspreet.
In 2020, Tenzing introduced Giri and Nandi to a money laundering scheme in which participants allowed their bank accounts to receive cash.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Matthew Choo said: "(Nandi) was instructed to recruit individuals who were willing to use their bank accounts to receive monies as coordinated by (people known as) 'Sandeep Jha' and 'Aman Kumar'.
"(Nandi) was promised a commission of 2 per cent of the monies received (and he) agreed."
Giri also agreed to take part in the scheme. Some time in August 2020, Akash overheard three of his housemates discussing the money laundering scheme and he was also recruited into it.
Nandi, Giri and Akash later carried on the business of providing cross-border money transfers in Singapore.

All three received monies in their bank accounts before transferring them out to people, including their accomplices.
Police said in their statement that on Sept 16, 2020, Singapore's Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) received a complaint from a victim in Canada, stating that he had lost more than $12,500 after falling prey to a scam.
The police added: "The scammer allegedly impersonated a member of staff from a company providing firewall and virus removal services and offered the victim a refund on his pre-paid subscription.
"The victim was allegedly deceived into allowing the scammer to access his computer remotely on the pretext of removing the software from his computer and in the process, his Internet banking log-in credentials were revealed in order to process the (purported) refund."
As a result, the victim's money was later transferred from his Canadian bank account to another account in Singapore. It belonged to Mukherjee, the court heard.
The offenders were caught after CAD officers conducted a raid at their home on Sept 22 that year.
The three men who were dealt with in court on Wednesday have made no restitution.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

A police officer earlier testified that Zin Mar Nwe claimed that she was abused by the elderly woman, who was visiting from India.

Maid on trial for murdering employer's mother-in-law was 'normal' the day before​

Myanmar national Zin Mar Nwe is accused of stabbing the 70-year-old 26 times at the family's flat on June 25, 2018. PHOTO: ST FILE

Selina Lum
Law Correspondent

Jan 6, 2022

SINGAPORE - Things were normal with a domestic worker right up to a day before she stabbed her employer's mother-in-law to death, the High Court heard on Thursday (Jan 6) in an ongoing murder trial.
Myanmar national Zin Mar Nwe is accused of stabbing the 70-year-old 26 times at the family's flat on June 25, 2018. She faces the death penalty or life imprisonment if convicted of murder.
While her passport reflects her age as 23 at the time of the incident, investigations revealed that she was 17 and had been instructed by her agent to lie about her age.
She does not dispute stabbing the victim and is likely to rely on a psychiatric report to contend that her mental responsibility for her acts was diminished.
A police officer earlier testified that Zin Mar Nwe claimed that she was abused by the elderly woman, who was visiting from India.
On Thursday, her employer testified that the maid, who had worked for the family for more than a month by then, did not complain to him about being hit by his mother-in-law.
The financial controller said that a day before the alleged murder, his mother-in-law had made chapati for dinner and the maid was happy and smiling as she helped serve it at the dining table.

He added that his mother-in-law was "not the type of person who would get physical" and that she could not have hit the maid without another family member coming to know about it.
This was because his wife, a part-time teacher, and their two daughters were at home most of the time as it was then the mid-year school holidays.
The victim and her family members cannot be identified due to a gag order as one of the trial witnesses is below 18 years of age.


Zin Mar Nwe started working for the family on May 10, 2018. They were the third family she was working for after she came to Singapore on Jan 5, 2018, it emerged on Thursday.
The elderly woman arrived from India on May 26 for a month-long stay.
On June 25, 2018 - the first day of school after the holidays - the two women were alone in the flat when the maid is said to have grabbed a knife from the kitchen and stabbed the victim multiple times.
The maid left the unit with some cash and roamed around before going to the maid agency, where she was later arrested.
On Thursday, the employer became emotional as he recounted how his wife had screamed over the phone that afternoon as she told him that something had happened to her mother.

He said he reached home to find police officers in his flat, and when he was allowed to enter the unit, he found that his bedroom was in a mess.
He told the court that the family had a cordial relationship with the maid.
He and his wife found her "not to be very driven" in doing her chores, but his mother-in-law never complained about her to him, he said.
He said Zin Mar Nwe was invited to join the family in watching Bollywood movies on TV and was offered books to read.
He did tell her off on two occasions when her work was not up to par, he added. On the second occasion, he noticed that she had a tear in her eye.
His wife arranged for someone from the maid agency to talk to her over the phone on June 17 about her work, he said.
Defence counsel Christopher Bridges put it to the man that he had warned the maid that she could be sent back to Myanmar as he was her third employer. He said he could not remember.
The other family members are expected to testify when the trial resumes next Tuesday (Jan 11).

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Migrant worker jailed, fined for role in running illegal dormitory that caught fire in 2015​

Raihan, 43, a Bangladesh national, was jailed for two weeks and fined $24,000. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
Osmond Chia

Jan 6, 2022

SINGAPORE - A construction worker who was involved in the running of an illegal dormitory that caught fire in 2015 was jailed for two weeks and fined $24,000 on Thursday (Jan 6).
Raihan Jahir pleaded guilty on Tuesday (Jan 4) to three charges that included doing paid work without a valid pass and the unauthorised development of land.
Another two charges, including committing a rash act to endanger lives, were taken into consideration during sentencing.
Raihan, 43, a Bangladesh national, will have to serve an additional six weeks in jail if he is unable to pay the fine.
The fire in a Geylang shophouse on April 3, 2015, killed two migrant workers and injured three others.
Investigations showed that the dormitory's operator had thwarted fire safety inspections just over a week earlier, which could have prevented the deadly fire.
Illegal dormitory operator Neo Wee Seng, 47, was earlier charged and court proceedings are under way.

A total of 33 workers lived at 86A Lorong 6 Geylang between December 2014 and April 2015, said Deputy Public Prosecutors Timotheus Koh, Goh Qi Shuen and Samuel Yap.
The space was rented by M/S HKH Construction since September 2014, which sub-leased it to Neo, who is from another company, Sim Hua, without informing the landlord.
Without approval, Neo turned the shophouse, which was meant only for residential purposes, into a dormitory with multiple rooms and 53 beds.


For a $150 rental rebate each month, Raihan, an employee of Amway Aluminium Construction, cleaned the area, collected rent from workers and looked for other workers keen to stay at the premises.
On March 23, 2015, Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) officers informed the landlord that there would be a fire safety enforcement check on March 25.
Neo knew about the inspection and instructed Raihan to move all the residents out of the premises. Raihan also obstructed the officers from doing their duty as it hid the true state of the premises, said the prosecution.
SCDF officers found no violations when they inspected the shophouse.
Just over a week later, a fire - believed to be from an electrical defect - broke out on the second floor. Two workers died of smoke inhalation.
"If the inspection had not been thwarted, the checks would have been done and it could have prevented the fire," said DPP Koh.


Deputy Presiding Judge Jennifer Marie said Raihan also knew that as a work permit holder, it was an offence for him to earn extra income, but assisted with the running of the illegal dormitory anyway.
His employers were not aware of his activities.
The judge agreed with the defence that Raihan's role in the changes to the premises were limited.
She said she had to consider the lives lost during sentencing and that Raihan was aware the premises were being used illegally as a dormitory.
Those found guilty of carrying out development of any land outside a conservation area without permission can be fined up to $200,000 and jailed for up to 12 months.

 

[Tun Tija]

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Jail and fine for repeat offender who verbally abused public service workers​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent


JAN 24, 2022

SINGAPORE - A man who was sentenced to three weeks' jail last April after he verbally abused a public servant continued committing similar offences just months later following his release.
On three separate occasions between September and November last year, Chandrasegaran Raman uttered vulgarities at an auxiliary police officer, a Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) sergeant and an SBS Transit station master. He also hurled a racial slur at the sergeant.
He also committed other offences after his earlier release, including failing to wear a mask properly while boarding a public bus.
The 54-year-old Singaporean was on Monday (Jan 24) sentenced to 12 weeks' jail and a fine of $2,000. He pleaded guilty to six charges for offences including three counts of harassment.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Gabriel Choong said Chandrasegaran was drunk on July 2 last year when he went to a Rowell Road restaurant in Little India and started shouting incoherently at its customers.
An employee alerted the police and officers asked Chandrasegaran to leave the area. But he lay down on a pavement beside the eatery and was arrested.
He was out on bail on Aug 22 last year when he was seen wearing a mask below his chin while boarding bus service 21. He complied when the driver asked him to wear it properly.

The DPP said: "The accused then began speaking incoherently to the victim. The victim attempted to converse with him, but subsequently decided to call the SBS Transit Control Centre for assistance, which in turn called the police.
"The victim asked the remaining passengers to alight from the bus, leaving him and the accused alone... The accused again pulled his mask below his chin and continued speaking incoherently with the victim, but the victim ignored him."
Chandrasegaran got off the bus about 10 minutes later. Court documents do not state what happened next.


The following month, he was consuming beer alone when he developed chest pains.
An ambulance took him to the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) where he became uncooperative with staff and repeatedly asked them to release him so he could go for a smoke. They allowed him to leave around 2am.
An auxiliary police officer was escorting him to a drop-off point when Chandrasegaran accused the man of insulting his mother and abused him with vulgar language.
In another incident, on Oct 31 last year, Chandrasegaran was drunk when he went to a police post in Jalan Bukit Merah and complained of chest pains.
An SCDF sergeant arrived around 11pm and Chandrasegaran insisted on going to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) even though SGH was nearer. He abused the officer with vulgar language and uttered a racial insult before leaving for TTSH on his own.
Two days later, an intoxicated Chandrasegaran approached a station master at Farrer Park MRT station and claimed that he had misplaced his mobile phone in a taxi.
DPP Choong told the court: "The accused was unable to describe the taxi and insisted that the victim call the investigation officer in charge of the accused's earlier offences. The victim suggested that he go to a police station."
Unhappy, Chandrasegaran scolded the man and directed an obscene word at him.
The victim alerted the police and Chandrasegaran was charged in court later.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man fined S$3,000 for verbally abusing policeman who told him to clear his beer​

Ili Nadhirah Mansor/TODAY
Sanjiv Kumar Sivaraj arriving at the State Courts on Jan 26, 2022. The 32-year-old was fined S$3,000 for verbally abusing a police officer.

BY LOUISA TANG
January 26, 2022

SINGAPORE — A 32-year-old man was fined S$3,000 on Wednesday (Jan 26) for verbally abusing a police officer, who had wanted him to dispose of his beer due to the 10.30pm rule on alcohol consumption.
Sanjiv Kumar Sivaraj had used a vulgarity on the policeman, saying: “Technically, we are paying for your salary, *******.”
The Singaporean pleaded guilty to one count of using abusive words towards a public servant.
He was drinking with four others at the coffee shop located at Block 259 Bukit Panjang Ring Road on Dec 23, 2020, the court heard.
A woman identified only as Madam May called the police for help at about 10.40pm. She said that she needed to remove beer cups from a group of customers at the coffee shop, but they had refused to let her do so and wanted to continue sitting at their table.
Senior Staff Sergeant Low Yong Chin and his two partners then went to the scene and found the five men sitting at a table, each with a glass half-filled with beer in front of them.

​

When Senior Staff Sergeant Low told them that they were not allowed to consume alcohol past 10.30pm and advised them to get rid of their beer, Sanjiv’s friends poured their beer into the pail and got up to leave.
Under the current Covid-19 “stabilisation phase”, alcohol at any food-and-beverage premises must be sold and consumed by 10.30pm.
This is on top of existing laws limiting the sale of liquor at retail outlets and consumption of liquor in public places between 10.30pm and 7am.
However, Sanjiv continued to sit at the table and smoke his cigarette. When Senior Staff Sergeant Low advised him again to dispose of his beer, he refused and told the policeman that he could dispose of it if he wanted to do so.
Senior Staff Sergeant Low said that he could not as Sanjiv had bought the beer. Sanjiv then stood and told him: “Technically, we are paying for your salary, *******.”
He was later placed under arrest.

​

State Prosecuting Officer Teo Keng Beng sought the fine imposed, saying that Sanjiv was “brazenly defiant” and had refused to listen to the policeman.
In mitigation, Sanjiv said that he regretted what he had done and would refrain from committing such acts in the future again. “I’d rather be more mature,” he added.
Under the Protection from Harassment Act, those who use abusive words towards a public servant can be jailed for up to 12 months or fined up to S$5,000, or punished with both.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Singapore woman who flouted Covid-19 measures during circuit breaker gets 10 weeks' jail​

Letchimi pleaded guilty to three charges under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures Act). ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
Samuel Devaraj

Feb 3, 2022

SINGAPORE - A woman was sentenced to 10 weeks' jail on Thursday (Feb 3) for leaving her home several times during the circuit breaker in 2020 to drink alcohol and socialise with friends who did not live with her.
Letchimi, 37, a Singaporean who goes by only one name, pleaded guilty to three charges under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures Act). Seven charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Kenneth Kee said in court documents that various enforcement officers had come across Letchimi from April 5 to May 21, 2020, on six occasions when she breached safe distancing measures.
Singapore's circuit breaker restrictions, which significantly reduced movements and interactions in public and private places to bring infection numbers down, were in place from April 7 to June 1. Before that, gatherings of more than 10 outside of work and school had been prohibited since late-March 2020.
"Notwithstanding a verbal reminder to the accused on each occasion to refrain from such impermissible acts in the future, the accused paid no heed to the warning and persisted in reoffending," said DPP Kee.
At least one of the co-accused persons - a man named Ravindran Marimuthu - has been dealt with. He was jailed for eight weeks.
On April 27, Letchimi met five people in Ang Mo Kio to drink and chat. Some individuals in the group passed lewd remarks at a female passer-by, who called the police.

Letchimi was found loitering at the void deck of a block of flats with the five people who do not live with her, including Ravindran.
On May 13, a man called the police and said his neighbour was drinking at the common corridor and blocking the path.
Police officers later found Letchimi outside a unit with three others who were not living with her, including Ravindran. Investigations revealed that the trio had gone to Letchimi's unit to eat, drink alcohol and chat.
On May 21, after receiving a call around 11.30pm, police officers found Letchimi, Ravindran and another person not living with her at an area between two blocks of flats in Ang Mo Kio. They were chatting and drinking alcohol.
In his written submissions for sentencing, DPP Kee asked for a sentence of at least 12 weeks' jail.
He said that unlike Ravindran, Letchimi had deliberately protracted the proceedings against her unnecessarily by about 1½ years.
Both Ravindran and Letchimi were charged in June 2020.


DPP Kee said: "The accused's conduct thus far belies any purported claim of genuine remorse and no mitigating weight should be attributed to her belated plea of guilt."
Letchimi, who is pregnant and due to give birth on April 11, was present in court on Thursday.
Her sentence will be deferred to Feb 8 after two scheduled medical appointments.

 

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2 years' jail, 6 strokes for man who acted as lookout during armed robbery of Jurong moneylender​

The man had discussed with two others and agreed to commit a robbery at OT Credit in Jurong Gateway Road in November 2020. ST PHOTO: JEAN IAU
Samuel Devaraj

Feb 3, 2022

SINGAPORE - He was tasked with scouting a licensed moneylender shop to see if the coast was clear before an accomplice joined him in an armed robbery.
But Tusheintar Segaran, a Malaysian, did not follow through with the plan despite entering the shop on Nov 19, 2020. Instead, he became a lookout during the armed robbery later that day.
For his role in the $48,000 heist, the Singapore permanent resident, now 22, was sentenced to two years' jail and six strokes of the cane after pleading guilty to a robbery charge on Thursday (Feb 3).
Deputy Public Prosecutor Jonathan Lee said in court documents that Tusheintar, Karrtik Stalniraj and Kotta Kumar Jeswanth had discussed and agreed to commit a robbery at OT Credit in Jurong Gateway Road.
Karrtik had suggested targeting the shop as it was staffed by only two female assistants.
On the day of the robbery, Tusheintar and Karrtik stole motorcycle helmets from a carpark in Jurong West to use during the heist.
They arrived at the vicinity of the shop at noon to observe the surroundings to determine an opportune moment to carry out the robbery.

The initial plan was for Tusheintar to enter the shop wearing a motorcycle helmet and pretend to inquire about getting a loan using a birth certificate. He would then signal Jeswanth when the coast was clear.
Jeswanth would then enter the shop and commit the robbery with Tusheintar.
After entering the shop, Tusheintar did not follow through with the plan and left. Court papers did not reveal the reason for his change of mind.
The trio continued to observe the shop until about 4pm when Karrtik decided he did not want to wait any longer. They then agreed to enter the shop together to commit the robbery.
Only one shop assistant - a 36-year-old woman - was there at the time. Jeswanth rushed towards her and pulled her hair with one hand while holding a karambit knife in the other.

A karambit knife used by Kotta Kumar Jeswanth who accosted a female employee during an armed robbery in November 2020 at OT Credit at Block 135 Jurong Gateway Road.</p> PHOTO: SM
DPP Lee said: "Jeswanth pointed the knife at the victim, told the victim not to shout and demanded that she throw cash into a grey haversack which he was carrying in front of his body. The victim was afraid for her safety and complied out of fear."
Jeswanth held on to the victim's ponytail while she was placing money into the haversack. Karrtik searched the shop for more money while Tusheintar acted as a lookout at the entrance.
After the assistant had placed the cash into the haversack, Jeswanth, still grabbing her ponytail, took her to the back of the shop and locked her in the office.
A few minutes after the three men fled, the assistant was rescued by a woman from a neighbouring shop.


The robbers met another man at a cemetery in Lim Chu Kang who was given the karambit knives and empty grey haversack to dispose.
They then split the criminal proceeds, with Tusheintar receiving $14,000 for his part in the heist.
He was arrested by the police in Jalan Kemuning Park in Sembawang at about 4am the next day.
Jeswanth was convicted for his role in the robbery on Jan 20, 2021, and ordered to undergo reformative training, which involves detention in a centre with a strict regimen, including foot drills and counselling.
Karrtik's case is at the pre-trial conference stage.
For armed robbery, an offender can be jailed for between five and 20 years and receive at least 12 strokes of the cane.

 

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Malaysian who delivered bag of heroin given death penalty, S'porean recipient gets life term​

The law provides for the death penalty if the amount of heroin trafficked is more than 15g. PHOTO: ST FILE

Selina Lum
Senior Law Correspondent


FEB 4, 2022

SINGAPORE - A Malaysian who rode his motorcycle into Singapore to deliver a bag containing more than 900g of a powdery substance has been sentenced to death for drug trafficking.
The four bundles inside the bag Kishor Kumar Raguan brought in were later analysed to contain 36.05g of heroin.
The law provides for the death penalty if the amount of heroin trafficked is more than 15g.
Singaporean Pung Ah Kiang, 61, who received the bag from Kishor, was sentenced to life imprisonment for possessing the drugs for the purpose of trafficking.
In written grounds released on Friday (Feb 4), High Court Justice Audrey Lim said she found that both Kishor and Pung knew that the bundles contained heroin.
In rejecting Kishor's defence that he believed the bag contained "stones", the judge said the 41-year-old, who was involved in drug activities, had failed to show that he genuinely believed the bundles contained something innocuous.
She found that Kishor was told that the items to be delivered were "kallu", which he knew referred to heroin.

Justice Lim also rejected Pung's claim that he did not know what was in the bag and that he was merely keeping it temporarily for his brother-in-law.
She imposed life imprisonment on Pung as he was certified by the prosecution to have substantively assisted the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) in disrupting drug trafficking activities.
"As the prosecution did not issue Kishor with a certificate of substantive assistance... I passed the mandatory death sentence on him," said the judge.


Kishor had brought the bag containing the bundles of drugs into Singapore on July 29, 2016, and delivered it to Pung near his Paya Lebar condominium.
Pung was arrested by CNB officers as he was walking back to his condominium. He was then escorted to his home, where more drugs were found.
Kishor's DNA was found on the bundles he delivered to Pung.
The prosecution contended that Kishor knew he was delivering "kallu" - a street name for heroin - and was told to collect $6,000 from Pung.
The prosecution said Kishor was no stranger to illegal drugs as he had acted as a middleman for drug transactions.


In his defence, Kishor said he was promised RM500 ($160) to deliver something to Singapore and was told that the item was "like a stone".
He claimed that he thought they could either be decorative stones or rocks and pebbles, but did not think too much about it.
Kishor claimed that he unravelled the black tape of the bundles but did not recognise the "brown coloured things" inside.
He said that after he delivered the bag, Pung handed him a white envelope. Kishor said he did not know what it contained .
Pung contested the voluntariness and accuracy of seven of his statements.
He claimed that the investigation officer had promised to help him if he used the words "bai fen" (literally white powder in Mandarin but also a street name for heroin) or "du pin" (Mandarin for illegal drugs) in his statements.
But Justice Lim concluded that the statements were voluntarily made and recorded what Pung had said.
"Pung could not maintain a consistent story about how portions of the statements came to be," said the judge.
The Singaporean said that from the end of 2014 until his arrest in 2016, his wife's brother had been sending dog food, cat food, biscuits and Chinese medicine to him through intermediaries.
Pung said he felt "forced" to take and store them temporarily at his home until his brother-in-law's friends came to collect them.
To maintain harmony in the home, he agreed to help his brother-in-law, who would pressure his wife if he did not do so, he said.

 

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Man who had multiple child porn videos in phone given a month's jail​

Sri Lankan Kolambage Dhanushka Chamara Perera pleaded guilty to one count of being in possession of 25 video files depicting child abuse. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Feb 7, 2022

SINGAPORE - A man who was in Singapore on a student pass joined a WhatsApp chat group that was later used as a platform to share obscene videos, including those depicting child pornography.
The court heard that one of the videos involved a baby or toddler.
Sri Lankan Kolambage Dhanushka Chamara Perera, now 25, was on Monday (Feb 7) sentenced to a month's jail after he pleaded guilty to one count of being in possession of 25 video files depicting child abuse.
A second charge of being in possession of more than 2,000 obscene videos was considered during sentencing. These other videos showed sex acts, including bestiality.
The group's administrator is said to be another Sri Lankan, Hindakumbure Charindu Dilshan Rajapaksha, 29, whose case is still pending.
The court heard that a friend had introduced Kolambage to Hindakumbure, who told the younger man that he had created a WhatsApp chat group with "many Sri Lankan people in it".
Kolambage then joined the "Singapore Boys Wela group", which was created in 2019.

The group was initially formed so that its members could share information or news from their home town.
But later on, they started sharing pornographic materials with one another on the platform, the court heard.
Despite these, Kolambage did not leave the group. He later told investigators he was "not really interested" in obscene videos involving underage subjects.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Tessa Tan said: "The accused also admitted in the course of investigations that... although he had tried his best to delete 'underage obscene videos', he might have at (times) missed out on deleting them, as there were 'too many of such videos'."
The DPP explained that Kolambage's WhatsApp setting was such that videos and photographs sent by other people would be automatically downloaded into his phone gallery.
"Accordingly, obscene films and child abuse material shared by other participants (in the group) were also automatically downloaded into the accused's phone gallery," she added.

Kolambage's offences came to light on Aug 6, 2020 when a foot patrol officer from the Public Transport Security Command saw him behaving suspiciously at Lavender MRT station around 1pm.
The officer and his colleagues were conducting a check on Kolambage when they saw that the Sri Lankan had a group chat with a display picture showing silhouettes of a man and a woman engaging in what appeared to be a sexual act.
They opened the chat, which had 256 participants, and saw that it had more than 6,000 media files.
Officers arrested Kolambage and seized his mobile phone. Some of the files were later found to contain child pornography.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Man jailed 6 months for assaulting maid, causing facial fractures​

Suriya Krishnan was also ordered to pay $8,500 in compensation. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

FEB 8, 2022

SINGAPORE - A man scolded his family's maid before punching the woman in the face three times, causing fractures.
Suriya Krishnan was on Tuesday (Feb 8) sentenced to six months' jail after he pleaded guilty to assaulting the 27-year-old Myanmar national.
The Singaporean, now 25, was also ordered to pay $8,500 in compensation.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Tay Zhi Jie said that Suriya's sister had employed the maid.
The siblings, their parents and the maid lived together in a flat in Hougang.
Shortly before the attack on May 29, 2020, the family were at home celebrating the birthday of Suriya's father.
Before the celebration, Suriya had consumed some liquor by himself and was drunk, the court heard.

At around 8.30pm, his mother asked the maid to cut some jelly for her son.
"The accused then went into the kitchen and told the victim to prepare food for him," said the DPP.
"The accused became upset at the victim, as she passed a remark to the effect that the accused ate a lot, and because she did not cut the jelly in a manner that he wanted."
Suriya scolded the maid and was in turn chided by his mother before she left the kitchen with him.
But Suriya returned to the kitchen soon after and punched the maid in the face three times before his family members restrained him.
The maid sought medical treatment the next day at Sengkang General Hospital, where she was found to have injuries, including facial fractures.
She was discharged on June 6, 2020.
She stopped working for the family following the incident and found new employment in August that year.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Singapore Indian Association to reopen after being shut over leadership dispute​

The Singapore Indian Association has been shuttered since Feb 7, 2022. ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
Osmond Chia


FEB 9, 2022

SINGAPORE - The Singapore Indian Association (IA), which has been shuttered since Monday (Feb 7) after an internal dispute between its leaders, is set to resume normal operations from Thursday (Feb 10).
Thanking members for their patience and understanding in a circular on Wednesday night, IA president Vishnu Pillai said it has been established that the current management committee is still responsible and accountable for the operations of the association.
In an unprecedented move, Mr Vishnu ordered the closure after an interim committee led by vice-president Tamil Marren was voted in to replace the current management committee during an annual general meeting (AGM) last Saturday.
The suspension of activities left some 800 club members locked out of the premises in Balestier Road. They included sportsmen who turned up at the storied training ground for practice on Tuesday and were told of the closure.
During the AGM, former Singapore National Olympic Council secretary-general and former IA president S.S. Dhillon questioned Mr Vishnu on why his committee had not called an election that had been due by Sept 30 last year.
When Mr Vishnu moved to adjourn the meeting to seek legal advice, Mr Marren said he would continue the AGM.
Mr Vishnu, 44, told The Straits Times on Wednesday afternoon that he questioned whether this was allowed before leaving the meeting.

The remaining members then voted to dissolve Mr Vishnu's team and elected an interim committee led by Mr Marren as caretaker of the IA until an election was arranged, according to a media statement by the interim team.
An election was not part of the AGM's agenda, based on a schedule seen by ST.
The interim committee said it was seeking advice and intervention from the Registry of Societies, adding that it did not have the resources to take the matter to court.
Mr Vishnu, the incumbent president since 2019, told ST: "I want to make clear that what happened after I left the meeting wasn't valid."
Mr Marren, 50, a former national footballer and the club's vice-president since 2019, told ST on Wednesday afternoon that he was working with lawyers and the authorities to reopen the premises.
Mr Vishnu said he had planned to hold an election and present the club's finances by April. When asked why it had been postponed by several months, he said one reason was the pandemic, which had led to disruptions among the staff.
He said: "We wanted the AGM to be face-to-face and not online because of the general age of the members and they are not very tech-savvy."
He added that the club's staff would continue to be paid during the suspension of activities.

Mr Dhillon, 90, a life member of the IA and president from 1999 to 2001, said the temporary suspension was a pity for its members, who have used the club for sports, welfare and cultural activities since its opening in 1923.
Due to celebrate its centenary next year, the IA has produced sporting greats like former national hockey player Nirmal Singh and has been a home training ground for the national cricket team.

 

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Death of foreign worker: Doctor fined $1,500 for negligence after issuing prescription without performing tests​

Haridass Ramdass was fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to one count of endangering the personal safety of his patient by a negligent act. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Wong Shiying

Feb 10, 2022

SINGAPORE - A doctor exposed his patient to potentially more serious side effects when he issued him a particular drug to treat his psoriasis without performing the necessary tests that would have alerted him to the patient's renal impairment.
Haridass Ramdass, 77, was on Thursday (Feb 10) fined $1,500 after pleading guilty to one count of endangering the personal safety of his patient, Savarimuthu Arul Xavier, by a negligent act.
Xavier, an Indian national working as a construction worker here, died in December 2014 after developing an invasive fungal infection following treatment.
Haridass, a general practitioner (GP), was originally charged with causing Xavier's death by a rash act, but the charge was later reducedby the prosecution.
The court heard that Xavier, then 28, had visited three different GPs between October and November 2014 after developing rashes over his body, face and limbs.
Each clinic diagnosed him with psoriasis and prescribed medications including antihistamines and steroid cream.
Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that causes red, itchy and scaly patches on the skin. It has no known cure.


When Xavier's condition did not improve, he visited Tekka Clinic in Little India on Nov 24, 2014.
Haridass was the sole doctor in the clinic.
He noted that Xavier had extensive reddish and round lesions all over his body, including his scalp.


The patient informed him that his skin condition had persisted for 20 days and that he had seen three other doctors before him.
Haridass diagnosed him with psoriasis and gave him an injection of dexamethasone, a steroid used to treat ailments like arthritis and breathing problems.
He also prescribed 10 tablets of methotrexate (MTX), 10 tablets of prednisolone and 10 tablets of chlorpheniramine.
MTX is a drug often used in the treatment of cancer and can also be used in the treatment of severe psoriasis. Possible side effects include life-threatening toxic reactions.
Said Deputy Public Prosecutor Timotheus Koh: "MTX may produce marked depression of the bone marrow and lead to a deficiency in red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets, as well as bleeding.
"Deaths have been reported to follow the use of MTX in the treatment of psoriasis... Potentially fatal opportunistic infections, for instance by fungi, may also occur with MTX therapy."

MTX therapy for patients with impaired renal function should be undertaken with extreme caution because the impairment will increase the potential for MTX toxicity.
Haridass did not arrange for Xavier to undergo tests and thus failed to discover the patient's renal impairment.
Ramdass was previously charged with causing the patient's death by a rash act.
The charge he admitted to on Thursday was for endangering personal safety by a negligent act.
The DPPs sought the maximum fine of $1,500, noting that the sentence must adequately deter negligence by medical professionals.
Haridass' lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh ofDavinder Singh Chambers, said in mitigation that there was no risk of Haridass committing the offence again as he had retired and did not renew his practising certificate.
"He is genuinely remorseful and accepts that he was wrong," Mr Singh added.

District Judge Eddy Tham said the court would proceed on the basis that only the personal safety of the patient was endangered.
"In these circumstances, I will assume that none of the grave circumstances (from taking MTX pills) had come to pass," he said.
"I would have no hesitation imposing a custodial sentence had significant harm been caused to the patient."
For endangering the personal safety of the patient, Haridass could have been given a maximum penalty of three years' jail and a $1,500 fine.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

Businessman accused of inappropriate behaviour sues for defamation​

Mr Manokaran Chakrapani (left) is suing two former Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry executives, including ex-chief executive Kumaran Barathan. PHOTOS: ST FILE

Selina Lum
Senior Law Correspondent

Feb 12, 2022

SINGAPORE - A businessman who was forced to step down from the board of the Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SICCI) following allegations of inappropriate behaviour is suing two of its former executives for defamation.
Mr Manokaran Chakrapani is accusing SICCI's former chief executive Kumaran Barathan and former human resource manager Priya Rathini Rajan of instigating the complaints made by female employees at a team meeting on May 6, 2019.
In the suit, Mr Chakrapani alleged that the meeting was an "exercise to plant ideas into the minds of these vulnerable attendees", who were then "cajoled into expressions and thoughts of being abused".
He contended that the minutes of this meeting, which were circulated to all board members more than two months later, was defamatory.
He wants the defendants to withdraw the alleged defamatory statements and publish written apologies in various newspapers. No quantum for damages was specified.
In his defence, Mr Barathan said he called for the meeting after a female employee complained that Mr Chakrapani had placed his hand "on her back/buttocks" during a photo-taking session at a golf tournament on May 3, 2019.
Ms Priya, who was told by Mr Barathan to take minutes at the meeting, contended that she was merely following instructions.

A hearing into the case started in the High Court on Friday (Feb 11).
Mr Chakrapani, who is married with three children, runs Mano Equestrian Services, which distributes products related to horses and other animals.
He has won many business awards, including Rising Entrepreneur of the Year in 2018, and was SICCI's honorary treasurer for the term 2018 to 2020.

Mr Chakrapani said he knew about the allegations of harassment only during a board meeting in July 2019.
His lawyer, Mr Anand Kumar Toofani Beldar, said in his opening statement: "The revelation came as a shock not only to Mano but to the entire board, and Mano was subsequently asked to leave SICCI in shame."
Mr Barathan's lawyer, Mr R.S. Bajwa, said that at the May 6 meeting, employees spoke out about Mr Chakrapani's behaviour but also stated that they did not wish to pursue the matter.

Mr Barathan conveyed this to SICCI chairman T. Chandroo and was told to close the matter.
However, word got out about the allegations.
In July, a board member, Mr Anil Murkoth Changaroth, asked Ms Priya for the minutes of the meeting. Ms Priya sought Mr Barathan's permission and he gave her the go-ahead.
Another board member, Dr Komathy Rajaratnam, spoke to some of the employees and raised the issue at the board meeting on July 25, 2019.
Mr Barathan was then instructed to circulate the minutes to all the board members.
Mr Chakrapani said he was "prematurely forced to vacate" his position on Aug 6, 2019.
On Jan 29, 2020, eight employees signed a declaration not to pursue the matter any further.
Mr Chakrapani sued Mr Barathan and Ms Priya on Aug 13, 2020.
Mr Bajwa argued that the May 6 meeting was covered under the defence of qualified privilege.
He said that Mr Barathan had a duty to hold the meeting to investigate allegations of improper behaviour.
Mr Bajwa also argued that the minutes amounted to fair comment, as there was a public interest in letting the public know about the behaviour of the officials of an organisation that represents the Indian business community in Singapore.
Ms Priya's lawyer, Mr Michael S. Chia, said the minutes were not defamatory and reflected what was stated at the meeting.