A 36-year-old Singaporean man, who was previously found guilty of trafficking 1.6kg of cannabis and sentenced to death.
He was executed yesterday (17 May) via hanging and becomes the second inmate on death row to be executed for drug offences this year, following the widespread coverage of Tangaraju S/O Suppiah’s death sentence.
He had filed an appeal against the death sentence by the High Court but it was dismissed in August 2019, before the Singapore Prison Service informed his family of his execution date on 10 May last Wednesday.
He then filed another appeal against the sentence hoping to reduce his sentence to life imprisonment, with his lawyer citing the discovery of more evidence and a change in the law.
However, it was also dismissed for “fail(ing) to raise sufficient material”.
The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) issued a statement in response to queries from the media, saying that the person was accorded the full due process of the law and that his petition to the President for clemency was not successful.
CNB’s Statement in Response to Media Queries
17 May 2023
1. A 36-year-old Singaporean who was convicted on charges of trafficking in controlled drugs had his capital sentence carried out on 17 May 2023. In respect for the family’s wish for privacy, we will not be releasing the name of the person.
2. The person was accorded full due process under the law, and had access to legal counsel throughout the process. His petition to the President for clemency was unsuccessful.
3. Capital punishment is used only for the most serious crimes, such as the trafficking of significant quantities of drugs which cause very serious harm, not just to individual drug abusers, but also to their families and the wider society. Capital punishment is part of Singapore’s comprehensive harm prevention strategy which targets both drug demand and supply.
CENTRAL NARCOTICS BUREAU
17 MAY 2023