Ah nehs...

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Executive director of migrant rights group Home suspended over misappropriation allegations​

Home said Ms Deshi Gill was suspended so that the group could conduct an internal inquiry. PHOTO: HOME: HUMANITARIAN ORGANISATION FOR MIGRATION ECONOMICS/FACEBOOK

Kok Yufeng
Transport Correspondent

Jan 17, 2023

SINGAPORE - The Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (Home) has suspended its executive director, Ms Deshi Gill, following allegations that she misappropriated funds from the migrant worker advocacy group.
In a statement posted on its social media channels on Tuesday, Home said Ms Gill was suspended so that Home could conduct an internal inquiry. Preliminary investigations showed there was a basis for suspected misconduct, the group added.
Home said it has notified the relevant authorities. Its board and staff members will provide all necessary information as part of any investigations that may be carried out.
Tuesday’s statement came after allegations were posted online accusing Ms Gill of making thousands of dollars of claims from Home without documentary proof of the expenses. The allegations were not substantiated.
Home said that it is currently reviewing its governance controls to ensure similar lapses do not occur again.
“We would like to sincerely thank all members of the public and donors who have supported us over the years,” the group added.
It said: “Home’s commitment to advance the migrant worker cause remains unwavering. During this time, all our operations and services continue to function, and we will continue to strive to improve the well-being and dignity of migrant workers in Singapore.”

 

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2 ex-employees of food distributor fined $24k each over graft charges​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Jan 26, 2023

SINGAPORE - A warehouse supervisor for food distributing firm Sonnamera received bribes totalling around $6,800 from a director of a company that offered manpower contracting services.
Maheswaran M. Ratinasavapathy accepted the money from Mr Hema Suthan Nair Achuthannayar, 26, in exchange for recommending the latter’s firm to Sonnamera for the provision of manpower services, said the prosecution.
Maheswaran also gave his then colleague Renitha Muraleedharan her share of commissions, totalling around $3,400, from Mr Hema.
At the time of the offences, Renitha was an account/administrative executive at Sonnamera, while Mr Hema worked for Inspiro.
On Thursday, Maheswaran, 27 and Renitha, 31, who no longer work for Sonnamera, each pleaded guilty to three graft charges. They were then fined $24,000 each.
Maheswaran, who has repaid $2,600 to Sonnamera, was also ordered to pay a penalty of $829.
Renitha, who has not repaid the firm, must pay a penalty of $3,379.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Jane Lim said that Mr Hema, who left for Malaysia in March 2020 before the Covid-19 circuit breaker was imposed, is still at large.
Sonnamera imports food products from other countries and distributes them to local supermarkets, DPP Lim told the court. It also exports products under its own brand to food distributors in other countries.
At the time of the offences, Maheswaran was in charge of managing the inventory of food products delivered to Sonnamera’s warehouse, while Renitha’s tasks included managing the accounts receivable in the finance department.

In June 2019, Maheswaran met Mr Hema at the Woodlands Checkpoint.
The DPP said: “(Mr Hema) asked Mahes if he could recommend his company to Sonnamera to provide manpower and offered to give Mahes an unspecified sum as commission in return for recommending his company, Inspiro, to supply workers to Sonnamera.
“In July 2019, Mahes shared with Renitha his plans to recommend (Mr Hema’s) company to supply manpower to Sonnamera.”

Maheswaran also told Renitha that Mr Hema would give commissions for recommending Inspiro to Sonnamera.
Renitha did not raise any objections, said the prosecutor.
Maheswaran received the bribes from Mr Hema in 2020, and gave Renitha her commission.
The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau received information about the case in January 2021.
Renitha and Maheswaran were handed multiple graft charges in 2022.

 

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Ex-company director who cheated another firm of more than $1.3m sentenced to 5 years’ jail​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Feb 6, 2023

SINGAPORE - A former director of a shipbuilding company was sentenced to five years’ jail on Monday after he cheated a financing firm of over $1.3 million by using 10 fake invoices.
Vignish Vijelal, 36, who was working for Lal Marine & Construction (LMC) when he committed the offences, cheated Capital March Platform (CMP) multiple times in 2016 through factoring agreements.
CMP specialises in factoring and LMC was its client.
Each invoice was accompanied by a work order purportedly between LMC and offshore structure builder Keppel FELS.
But there was no contract between LMC and Keppel FELS in relation to the painting and blasting works stated on the 10 work orders.
Instead, for each of the 10 LMC work orders, there was a corresponding genuine work order between another firm – Lal Offshore Marine (LOM) – and Keppel FELS. LOM was the sister company of LMC.
At the time of the offences, Vignish and his father were directors at LOM.

District Judge Marvin Bay had earlier convicted Vignish of 10 cheating charges after a trial.
Before handing down the sentence on Monday, the judge noted that Vignish said in his mitigation plea that he had made repayments totalling more than $400,000, putting the nett loss by CMP to be over $950,000.
The judge said: “In sentencing for financial and commercial crimes, the quantum of loss is often considered to be a proxy to peg the harm caused by the criminal activity.”

In his submissions, Deputy Public Prosecutor Suhas Malhotra said that factoring is a process in which a company obtains a loan by assigning a debt owed to the company itself.
For the current case, the prosecution said that the 10 invoices, which LMC had purportedly issued to Keppel FELS, were submitted to CMP for factoring.
However, the DPP said that Keppel FELS did not owe any debt to LMC, adding. “Each of the 10 LMC work orders was forged. There was no contract between LMC and Keppel FELS in relation to the painting and blasting works stated on the 10 work orders.
“The vast majority of the debt owed by Keppel FELS under the 10 LOM work orders had already been paid.”

 

[Leckmichamarsch]

Meanwhile in Malaysia, Malays and chinese learn the art of indian odissi( Odyssey?) dance.

So?

 

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3 workers fined for trying to steal electric cables in attempt that caused fourth man to die​

(From left) Ezhilarasan Nagarajan, Radhakrishnan Elavarasan and Balasubramaniyan Nivas each pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted theft. ST PHOTOS: KELVIN CHNG

Samuel Devaraj

Feb 7, 2023

SINGAPORE – Three electrical technicians and a driver, who were sent to work at a building whose occupant was moving to another location the next day, decided to steal electric cables from it.
In the process of stealing the cables, 27-year-old driver Murugan Kothalam was electrocuted and died.
On Monday, the three technicians each pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted theft.
Ezhilarasan Nagarajan, 26, and Radhakrishnan Elavarasan, 28, were fined $1,000, while Balasubramaniyan Nivas, 29, who had another charge taken into consideration during his sentencing, was fined $1,500.
Deputy Public Prosecutor V. Jesudevan said that Elavarasan and Nivas, who were working for Alltech Systems, arrived at the Police National Service Department (PNSD) building in Still Road at or about 10.30am on Oct 15, 2020.
They were there to dismantle the distribution board boxes, hose reel boxes and projector stands from the main and annex buildings as directed by their supervisor.
After they arrived, Elavarasan and Nivas, who knew they were not supposed to cut or remove any cables, proceeded to the main building to start work, unescorted by security.

While there, Nivas noticed there were a lot of loose electric cables hanging from the ceiling and decided to steal them.
He told Elavarsan his plan that included selling the cables, and the two men began to remove them from the ceiling by pulling and cutting them.
At around 10.30am, Nagarajan and Kothalam, who were employed by STIE, were instructed by their supervisor to pass the other two men a wrench needed to remove the hose reel box.

After passing the wrench, Nagarajan met Kothalam, who had gone to the PNSD annex building and found cables hanging from the ceiling.
The two men began pulling and cutting the electric cables as Elavarasan and Nivas came to check on them.
Nagarajan and Elavarasan then tidied the cables by tying them in bundles and went to the main building to remove the hose reel.
Meanwhile, Kothalam and Nivas continued removing the electric cables in the PNSD annex building.
At about 1pm, Nivas heard a loud crashing sound and discovered Kothalam in one of the rooms standing on a ladder with his upper body above a ceiling panel. He was not moving and the ladder was shaking.
Suspecting that Kothalam had been electrocuted, Nivas kicked the ladder and Kothalam fell to the ground.

Nivas alerted the other two men and tried resuscitating Kothalam.
Elavarasan called the Singapore Civil Defence Force for assistance and Kothalam was taken to Changi General Hospital, where he died later that day.
A coroner’s inquiry into Kothalam’s death that was held on Aug 5, 2021 found that the cause of death was electrocution.
In court on Monday, the lawyers representing each offender asked the judge for a low fine for their clients and cited their modest means.
For attempted theft, they could have been jailed for up to three years, fined or both.

 

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Maid abuser who tried to cover victim’s bruises with make-up handed jail sentence​

Deepakala Chandra Secharan arriving at the State Courts on Jan 4, 2023. She claimed trial to maid abuse. PHOTO: ST FILE

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

March 6, 2023

SINGAPORE - A woman who applied foundation to her maid’s face to cover up bruises when the police came knocking was on Monday sentenced to 10 months and 10 weeks’ jail.
Deepakala Chandra Secharan, 38, was also ordered to give the domestic worker, Ms Eni Agustin, compensation of $4,000.
Defence lawyer Mohamed Baiross from IRB Law said both his client and the domestic helper suffered following the offences. He also described Deepakala as a good, contributing member of society.
Before handing down the sentence, District Judge Ow Yong Tuck Leong stressed that a clear signal has to be sent out that maid abuse cases will be firmly dealt with.
He had earlier convicted Deepakala of three counts of assault after a trial.
Ms Eni, whose nationality and age were not stated in court documents, started working at Deepakala’s flat in Woodlands on Dec 9, 2019, and was abused 16 days later after she mixed up some cutlery while placing the items in a kitchen drawer.
Deepakala became angry when she saw this and repeatedly poked Ms Eni’s forehead with her index finger, causing a scratch, Deputy Public Prosecutors Yang Ziliang and Chong Ee Hsiun said in their submissions

On April 23, 2020, she used a wooden clothes hanger to hit Ms Eni until it broke. The next day, Deepakala flew into a rage when the maid could not find masking tape.
“The accused then took a nearly depleted roll of masking tape... and hit the victim’s forehead with it,” the prosecutors said in earlier proceedings.
Deepakala also slapped Ms Eni several times on other occasions and hit her with a stick.

On April 25, 2020, the domestic worker was hanging laundry from the kitchen window when another maid in a lower unit saw her.
The other maid gestured to ask why Ms Eni had bruises on her face, and Ms Eni replied by demonstrating that her employer had hit her.
The other maid called the Centre for Domestic Employees, which alerted the police. Officers arrived at Deepakala’s flat later that day.

When Deepakala realised the police were at her door, she took Ms Eni to a bathroom.
“The accused then brought an ice pack for the victim and instructed the victim to lie to the police about the origin of the injuries,” the DPPs said.
“The accused told the victim to tell the police the injuries were sustained by the victim when she underwent a traditional body-scratching treatment.”
Deepakala then applied make-up on Ms Eni’s face to cover up the bruises. As Ms Eni hid in the bathroom, Deepakala lied to the officers that the helper was with Deepakala’s parents in Yishun.
An officer requested Deepakala and her husband make arrangements for the police to interview the maid at the parents’ home.
The couple then made their way to Yishun in a car, with the officers following them separately. Deepakala and her husband had Ms Eni with them.
They were at Block 403, Yishun Avenue 6 when a policeman saw heavy foundation on the maid’s face.
The bruises were visible after she wiped away the make-up.
The officers then took her to the Woodlands flat to pack her things, so that she could be moved to a safer place.
For each count of maid abuse, an offender can be jailed for up to four years and fined up to $10,000.

 

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Trust Yoga ex-instructor fined $4,000 for molesting woman during lesson​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Mar 16, 2023

SINGAPORE - An instructor at Trust Yoga tapped a female student’s buttocks during a lesson on May 22, 2022.
Indian national Kumar Amrit, 29, who is no longer working there, was fined $4,000 on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to a molestation charge.
He was the second former Trust Yoga instructor to appear in court in March over molestation charges in unrelated cases.
Another Indian national, Rajpal Singh, 33, has claimed trial after he allegedly molested five women. His case is pending.
For the current case, Deputy Public Prosecutor Tan Jing Min said that in April 2022, Kumar’s victim bought a 20-class package for one-on-one lessons at Trust Yoga in Telok Ayer Street.
The woman, whose details have been redacted from court documents, then attended three lessons with another yoga instructor, identified as Mr Manoj.
She was scheduled to have her fourth lesson with Mr Manoj at 9am on May 22, 2022, but he was unavailable for that time slot.

The woman then agreed for Kumar to take his place. During the lesson, Kumar asked her to perform some warm-up exercises.
The DPP said: “Without asking for the victim’s permission, the accused placed his hand on her lower back and applied pressure.
“He then instructed her to lie on her stomach while he used his feet to step on her buttocks and lower back. Subsequently, he used his hands to massage her upper back, while her face was pressed to the yoga mat.”
The prosecutor told the court that Kumar gave minimal verbal cues when moving the victim from one pose to the next as he did not feel like speaking to her.
Instead, he physically moved her into position without warning before telling her to perform a stretching exercise.
At 9.46am, Kumar physically moved the woman into another position.
He then placed his hand on her left buttock and applied pressure. He also rested his forearm against the victim’s buttock area.
DPP Tan said: “The accused counted to 15 seconds aloud and then... tapped his hand against the victim’s buttock, over her yoga pants.
“The victim felt shocked... She told the accused (not to touch her buttocks). The accused acknowledged and proceeded with the rest of the yoga class.”
After class, she went home and alerted the police later that day.

 

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Site superintendent told workers to build improvised scaffold that collapsed, injuring 9​

David Sun
Correspondent

March 22, 2023

SINGAPORE - As the site superintendent, he had a responsibility to ensure the safety of himself and that of others.
Instead, Jayaraman Sankaran, 53, instructed workers to erect a scaffold using an improvised method to save time.
The unsafe scaffold later collapsed, injuring a total of nine workers, including one who suffered a fractured wrist and another who suffered four broken teeth.
On Tuesday, Jayaraman, a Malaysian who was employed by Multiheight Scaffolding, was jailed for six months after he was convicted on one count of a negligent act under the Workplace Safety and Health Act.
He had claimed trial, but was eventually found guilty and convicted in November 2022.
On or about Jan 27, 2017, at the Horizon Singapore Terminals worksite at 11 Meranti Crescent, Jayaraman instructed workers from Multiheight to erect the scaffold using an improvised method of joining individually constructed scaffold towers without effective control measures to ensure its stability.
The scaffold, which had been built to a height of 9m, was erected around a structure identified as Tank 208 when it collapsed.

During the trial, Jayaraman’s defence was that he was not supervising the works; the incident was caused by other factors or parties; and that he never instructed the workers to erect the scaffold using the improvised method.
The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) prosecutors Nur Ishameena and Kimberly Boo rebutted the claims, highlighting multiple inconsistencies between his court testimony and statement he had given to MOM during investigations.
In the statement to MOM, Jayaraman said that when he entered the tank on the morning of Jan 27, the scaffold towers were erected to a height of four lifts.

But in his court testimony, he said that the scaffold had been built to only the height of one lift at the time and they were about to start building a “second one”.
In his statement, Jayaraman had also stated he was responsible for dictating the improvised manner by joining scaffold towers using tubular pipes.
But in court, he denied this, saying he had not given such an instruction.

Multiple witnesses had testified otherwise, saying that Jayaraman had indeed given the instructions, and had also supervised the operation.
Jayaraman later admitted in court that he had not only given the instructions, but had also said how the structure was to be built.
The prosecution said that it was fortuitous no one died from his negligence, and that a deterrent message must be made. It urged the court for a sentence of eight to 10 months’ jail.
Jayaraman has been offered bail for $10,000, and is expected to begin serving his sentence on April 4. The court rejected his request to leave jurisdiction.
For performing a negligent act that endangered the safety of others, he could have been jailed for up to two years and fined up to $30,000.

 

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WhatsApp group administrator jailed for sending out sexually explicit videos of children​

Sri Lankan Hindakumbure Charindu Dilshan Rajapaksha distributed 943 obscene films in a group chat between March 16 and July 26, 2020.

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

Mar 31, 2023

SINGAPORE - A man who was an administrator of a WhatsApp group when he sent out 17 clips involving child sexual abuse was jailed for 18 months and two weeks on Friday.
Sri Lankan Hindakumbure Charindu Dilshan Rajapaksha, 30, who was married and has a three-year-old child, had pleaded guilty on March 2 to various offences that included distributing child abuse material.
The prosecution had said then: “The contents of these clips scrape the very pits of depravity. They involve children being raped, possibly being trafficked into sex, and in one clip a pre-pubescent child (was) filmed having sex with a farmyard animal.”
A 25-year-old Sri Lankan man, who was linked to the case, was sentenced to a month’s jail in February 2022.
Hindakumbure’s case was the second one involving child pornography this week.
On Tuesday, Ansari Abdul Amin, 36, was jailed for two years for downloading more than 13,600 files of such material.

In Hindakumbure’s case, the prosecution said he had come to Singapore to study hospitality management. His arrival date was not disclosed.

Between 2019 and early 2020, the Sri Lankan and his six roommates created a group on WhatsApp.
He was one of seven administrators and other Sri Lankans were invited to join the group.
Hindakumbure distributed 943 obscene films in the group chat between March 16 and July 26, 2020.

These included videos of adults engaging in sexual activities with one another.
Seventeen video files showed children engaging in sexual activities.

On Aug 6, 2020, a foot patrol officer with the public transport security command spotted the younger Sri Lankan behaving suspiciously in the concourse area of Lavender MRT station.
The officer and his colleagues conducted a check and saw a group chat on his mobile phone. It had a display picture showing a silhouette of two people having sex.
The officers saw it had more than 6,000 obscene videos and files, including child pornography material. They arrested him and seized his phone.
Hindakumbure was identified as one of the group chat’s administrators.
Deputy Public Prosecutors Chong Kee En and Susanna Yim stated in court documents that by the time the police discovered the group chat, it had 520 participants.
The DPPs added that 256 of them were active participants at the time.

 

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Jail for man who dozed off at wheel of cement mixer while drunk, causing chain collision​

Samuel Devaraj

Apr 6, 2023

SINGAPORE - Sowrirajulu Karunakaran was driving a cement mixer under the influence of alcohol when he fell asleep and caused a chain collision last May.
Several people were injured in the crash, including a man who had pelvic fractures.
Sowrirajulu, a 45-year-old Indian national, was sentenced to 10 months’ jail after he pleaded guilty to a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol, and another for causing grievous hurt while driving without due care or reasonable consideration.
He will also be disqualified from driving for 14 years after his release.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Nicolle Ng said Sowrirajulu, who was working for Infinite Logistics and Trading, started drinking alcohol at 3pm on May 18, 2022.
He was driving the cement mixer along Yishun Avenue 8 at about 7.20pm when he fell asleep. At that time, the weather was clear, the road surface was dry, and the traffic volume was moderate.
When Sowrirajulu woke up, he realised the traffic light ahead was red and jammed on the brakes, but was unable to stop in time.

The cement mixer collided into the rear of a lorry and caused a chain collision involving four vehicles.
The cement mixer was dented and damaged at the front, while the lorry had multiple severe dents, scratches and a shattered windscreen.
Sowrirajulu, who failed the breathalyser test, was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol.
He was taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital for medical attention and further tests. His blood ethanol concentration was found to be about three times that of the legal limit.
The two passengers of the lorry, both Indian nationals, were taken to the same hospital.
One of the men, 38, had pelvic fractures and middle and lower back pain, and was hospitalised for three days. The other man, 41, had a forehead laceration and neck strain, and was discharged on the same day with 10 days of hospitalisation leave.
As a result of the damage caused to it, the lorry had to be disposed by the company that owned it.
A 44-year-old Singaporean woman, who was the driver of a van that was hit by the lorry, had a minor head injury and was also taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital.
The back of her vehicle was dented, and repairs cost $31,290.03.
A third vehicle, a Toyota, had damage to its rear, which cost $17,762 to repair.

 

[Karmile005]

 

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70-year-old who went on drug run with PMD convicted of heroin trafficking​

Packets of heroin were recovered from the PMD. PHOTO: COURT DOCUMENTS

Selina Lum
Senior Law Correspondent

Apr 14, 2023

SINGAPORE - A 70-year-old man who went out on his personal mobility device (PMD) with $9,000 one early morning four years ago, and exchanged the cash for a bag of drugs, was convicted of heroin trafficking on Friday.
Packets of heroin were recovered from the PMD belonging to Low Sze Song, a Singaporean, after his arrest.
Sivaprakash Krishnan, a 35-year-old Malaysian who handed him the drugs, was similarly convicted of trafficking 43.2g of pure heroin.
The law provides for the death penalty if the amount of heroin trafficked exceeds 15g.
Both men were found by the High Court to be drug couriers, which means they are eligible to be sentenced to life in prison instead of the death penalty if specific conditions are met.
Drug couriers can get life imprisonment if they are certified by the prosecution to have substantively assisted the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) in disrupting drug trafficking activities, or if they had a mental abnormality that substantially impaired their responsibility for their acts.
At about 6.20am on May 30, 2019, at a bus stop in Sumang Walk in Punggol, Sivaprakash, who was on his motorcycle, handed Low a white plastic bag containing packets of drugs, while Low passed Sivaprakash a stack of cash totalling $9,000.

They were separately arrested by CNB officers soon after.
Both men were jointly tried before Justice Dedar Singh Gill in a trial that began in July 2022.
Prosecutors contended that the two men were in possession of four packets of drugs, which was corroborated by DNA evidence found on the drug bundles and the plastic bag.

Low argued that Sivaprakash handed him only three packets of drugs.
He claimed that the fourth packet, which contained 8.64g of heroin, was not recovered from the PMD.
He relied on a photograph that showed the plastic bag and three packets of drugs. The photo was used by a CNB officer to record a statement from Low, who was not questioned about the fourth bundle.

Prosecutors contended that Low Sze Song and Sivaprakash Krishnan were in possession of four packets of drugs, which was corroborated by DNA evidence found on the drug bundles and a plastic bag containing the drugs. PHOTO: COURT DOCUMENTS
Both men also argued in their defence that they had no knowledge of the nature of the drugs.
In his written judgment on Friday, Justice Gill rejected their contentions.
He said Low’s assertion that he did not check the contents of the plastic bag was at odds with the undisputed evidence that his DNA was found on the interior of the bag.
Low had also argued that the circumstances were not so highly suspicious that he should have inquired into the contents of the bag.
Low said he was instructed to pass $9,000 to a man wearing a red helmet, and did not consider it a large sum of money in the light of his history with crimes including armed robbery, association with secret societies, and credit card fraud.
But the judge said the substantial sum would naturally have raised questions in the mind of any reasonable person of the nature of the contents of the bag.

Sivaprakash argued that he believed that he was delivering “paan parak”, a form of betel nuts, because an acquaintance had asked him to do so, but Justice Gill found this to be implausible.
He said: “Sivaprakash was unable to explain why, if he really believed that the drug bundles were ‘paan parak’, there was a need to pack and deliver them in such a clandestine manner as that which took place, why he was paid RM1,000 (S$300) to make a delivery of ‘paan parak’ and why he received $9,000 in cash from Low in the course of the delivery.”
Justice Gill also concluded that the fourth drug bundle was in fact recovered from the PMD.
He said the omission of the fourth bundle from the photo does, at first blush, gave room to pause.
But the testimonies from the arresting CNB officers relating to the search of the PMD were convincing and corroborated by a field diary entry recorded by one of the officers, he said.
Low’s DNA was also found on the adhesive sides of the taped packaging of the fourth bundle.
“In the light of this, the omission of the fourth drug bundle from the photograph and from Low’s contemporaneous statement was perhaps a lapse, but insufficient to raise a reasonable doubt that the fourth drug bundle had not been seized from the PMD.”

 

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Jail for ex-CAG staff who took bribes for issuing airside driving permits to unqualified workers​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

MAY 5, 2023


SINGAPORE – A former Changi Airport Group (CAG) support officer who accepted bribes to issue Airside Driving Permits (ADPs) to unqualified workers was sentenced to three years and two months’ jail on Friday.
Premkumar Jaya Kumar, 42, took $4,400 from people including a company director.
An ADP allows the permit holder to drive selected vehicles on any part of an airside except for taxiways and runways. An airside is the part of an airport terminal beyond passport and customs control, including places such as hangars and cargo loading areas.
Premkumar, who worked with CAG from Oct 6, 2015, to Dec 25, 2017, had issued the permits even though he knew that company director Diong Yao’s workers did not pass the requisite theory and practical tests.
At the time of the offences, Diong, 41, was a director at Singapura Logistics Support, while another man, Noordin Abdul Gaffor, 48, was then a supervisor at the firm. Their cases are still pending.
Premkumar also modified data in a CAG computer platform called the Apron Permit Issuance and Enforcement System (Apies) to falsify the workers’ profiles and show that they had purportedly passed their theory and practical tests.
He pleaded guilty to offences under the Computer Misuse and Cybersecurity Act and multiple counts of graft.

Besides the jail term, he was also ordered to pay a penalty of $7,500. Premkumar will spend an additional 15 days behind bars if he is unable to fork out this amount.
The prosecution said: “By committing these offences, the accused unleashed at least 42 untrained and unlicensed drivers on Changi Airport’s airside. The inherent danger these untrained drivers posed to human safety and property on the airside is exponential.”
Premkumar’s offences came to light when a 19-year-old Malaysian youth, who was then driving a baggage tractor in an airside area, collided with a parked SilkAir plane on Dec 8, 2017.

As a result, the aircraft sustained $795,000 in damage and was declared unfit to fly.
CAG then conducted an investigation and found out that the teenager’s Apies profile was inaccurate and that Premkumar had modified it.
A CAG manager then alerted the police on Dec 15, 2017.
Before committing the offences, Premkumar met Noordin, who was then sitting a theory test as he was applying for an ADP in March 2016.
According to court documents, Noordin later approached Premkumar and told him that his company was servicing a contract with Sats – Changi Airport’s main ground-handling and in-flight catering service provider – that required them to supply drivers at the airside.
Noordin also told Premkumar that the drivers have to obtain their ADPs quickly in order to start work soon.
Noordin asked him to bring forward these drivers’ practical driving test dates, and Premkumar then replied that he will consider the matter.

Deputy public prosecutors Tay Jingxi and Joshua Phang said that on Diong’s instructions sometime later, Noordin offered Premkumar at least $300 per driver whose ADP application he was able to “expedite” in this manner.
Premkumar agreed to this arrangement, which he knew was corrupt.
Among other things, he exercised leniency towards the drivers in their practical tests, ensuring that they passed them. Premkumar also accepted $2,000 in bribes from Diong.
On or before September 2016, Noordin told him that some workers had problems with their theory tests as they were not educated.
Noordin then asked Premkumar to help “expedite” their applications.
The prosecutors said: “(Premkumar) then came up with the idea of identifying existing Apies profiles belonging to valid ADP holders who were no longer working at Changi Airport, and modifying the particulars of these shell profiles to those of Noordin’s drivers.”
Premkumar received another $2,400 in bribes in 2016 and 2017. Improper ADPs were then issued to at least 42 drivers between September 2016 and December 2017.
His offences came to light in December 2017, and he surrendered to the police on Dec 19, 2019.
His bail was set at $25,000 on Friday, and he is expected to surrender at the State Courts on May 17 to begin serving his sentence.

 

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Jail for lorry driver who caused fatal accident but convinced colleague to take the rap​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

May 8, 2023

SINGAPORE - A lorry driver failed to give way to a cyclist who was then crossing a road at a zebra crossing, causing an accident. The cyclist later died in hospital on April 16, 2022.
Instead of coming clean, Udaiyappan Vasanth, who was at the wheel, managed to convince his colleague, Rajendhiran Chelladurai, to take the fall for the offence.
The Indian nationals decided to tell the truth when they found out two days later that Mr Abdul Aziz Syed Mohamed, 64, was killed in the crash.
On Monday, Udaiyappan, 25, was sentenced to a year’s jail after he admitted to one count each of causing a death by driving without reasonable consideration for other road users and intending to pervert the course of justice.
He was also disqualified from holding or obtaining all classes of driving licences for eight years from his date of release.
Rajendhiran, 28, was earlier sentenced to three months’ jail in April.
Udaiyappan had a driving licence but was then under a one-year probation period.

Shortly before the accident, he was driving along Jalan Eunos at around 5pm on April 16, 2022 when he approached a slip road to the Pan-Island Expressway towards Tuas. Rajendhiran was sitting in the front passenger seat at the time.
Udaiyappan was driving towards a zebra crossing at a speed of about 40kmh when he saw Mr Abdul Aziz cycling across it.
He failed to give way to the cyclist and the lorry struck the older man, causing him to be flung off his bicycle before landing about 7m away.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng Jun Kai said that although the lorry had been installed with an in-vehicle camera, it did not capture the accident as its memory card was corrupted.
He also told the court that at the time of the accident, the traffic volume was moderate, the road surface was dry, the weather was fine, and visibility was good.
Another motorist alerted the police and an ambulance rushed Mr Abdul Aziz to Changi General Hospital where he was found with injuries including a fractured skull. He was pronounced dead shortly before 7pm that day.

Before the authorities arrived at the scene, Udaiyappan asked Rajendhiran to take the blame for the accident as Udaiyappan was still on probation and feared that his driving licence would be revoked.
The DPP said: “The co-accused agreed to the request... as the co-accused had been assigned to be the driver of the lorry on April 16, 2022 and was purportedly afraid that (their employer) would find out that he was not the driver.”
Rajendhiran later lied to a policewoman, claiming that he was the one who was driving the lorry at the time of the accident.
He was arrested and continued with his lies when he had his statement recorded. He was released on bail later that evening.
Two days later, Rajendhiran and Udaiyappan found out from their employer that Mr Abdul Aziz did not survive the accident.
Rajendhiran told Udaiyappan that he no longer wanted to take the rap for the offence and the two men agreed to tell the truth to the police. Udaiyappan came clean about what he had done on April 19, 2022.
For causing a death by driving without reasonable consideration for other road users, an offender can be jailed for up to three years and fined up to $10,000.
And for perverting the course of justice, an offender can be jailed for up to seven years and fined.

 

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Jail for man who hit a man he thought was CNB officer, attacked another with scissors​

Lavan Saravana used a pair of scissors to stab a man on Dec 31. He also used it to scratch another man's car. PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE

Samuel Devaraj
UPDATED

MAY 9, 2023

SINGAPORE - Bearing a resentment against the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB), Lavan Saravana saw a man at an HDB estate and attacked him, thinking he was from the agency.
About 20 minutes later, he attacked another man, this time using a pair of scissors he had with him.
Lavan, 36, was sentenced to nine months and six weeks’ jail on Monday after pleading guilty to one charge of affray and one count of voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons. He also admitted to two charges for missing urine tests.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Kor Zhen Hong said Lavan had consumed about 1 ½ bottles of rice wine on Dec 31, 2022, and was very drunk.
At about 4.35 pm, he was at the sheltered walkway near Block 337 Jurong East Avenue 1 when he spotted Mr Daniel Tan Yeow Boon, 44, whom he assumed was from the CNB and confronted him.
DPP Kor said: “As the accused approached Daniel, the accused suddenly uttered vulgarities at Daniel, and told Daniel, ‘You CNB arh, you think you CNB I scared arh’?”
Soon after, Lavan threw a punch at Mr Tan, who retaliated.

A motorcycle rider who had spotted the fight tried to separate them, but after he rode off, the pair continued fighting for about two minutes before Lavan walked away.
He went to the car park near Block 340 Jurong East Avenue 1 and noticed Mr Tan driving a vehicle. He stood in front of the vehicle in a bid to confront Mr Tan once more.
Eventually, Mr Tan was able to drive away, but as he was doing so, Lavan used a pair of scissors he had with him to slash at the vehicle, causing some scratch marks on one of the doors.
Mr Tan fractured his finger and sustained a bruise on his forehead in the fight and was given 14 days of hospitalisation leave.
After Mr Tan drove off, Lavan was near Block 339 Jurong East Avenue 1 when he noticed Mr Mohammad Faizal Khan Sherin Khan, 47.
Lavan approached Mr Faizal from behind and stabbed him in his back. Mr Faizal turned around and confronted Lavan, who ignored his victim and walked away.

Mr Faizal, who lodged a police report, sustained a 0.5 cm puncture wound on his back and was given two days of medical leave.
DPP Kor asked the court to sentence Lavan to between 8 and 13½ months’ jail, citing his criminal record, which included criminal intimidation convictions in 2012 and 2018 and a conviction for voluntarily causing hurt in 2018.
The prosecutor also noted his high culpability in the attack on Mr Tan.
He said: “This was an unprovoked attack against someone the accused (wrongly) perceived to be a CNB officer. Moreover, during the confrontation, the accused threw the first punch against Daniel.”

 

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Housewife gets 16 weeks’ jail after she punched domestic helper and threw vomit at her face​

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

May 11, 2023

SINGAPORE - Unhappy with her domestic helper’s work performance, a housewife repeatedly punched the Indian national and threw vomit at the victim’s face.
Monica Sharma, 37, who is also an Indian national, was sentenced to 16 weeks’ jail on Thursday after she pleaded guilty to an assault charge.
Her husband had employed the 25-year-old victim who started working in the family’s condominium apartment near River Valley Road on Jan 20, 2021.
The maid was cleaning some toys in the living room on April 10, 2021 when Sharma raised her voice as she was not pleased with how the younger woman was performing the task.
She then punched the helper’s face three times. Sharma’s husband, who was nearby, tried to stop the assault and apologised to the victim for his wife’s behaviour.
Instead of stopping, Sharma took a toy to hit the victim’s head once.
According to court documents, she also threw vomit at the younger woman, but court documents did not disclose its source.

Deputy Public Prosecutor R. Arvindren said that the maid suffered injuries including a swelling over her left eyebrow and a bruised nose.
The helper snapped pictures of her own injuries and sent them to her agent in India, who then forwarded the photographs to some contacts in Singapore. The police were alerted the next day.
Officers went to the apartment and the maid was later seen at Changi General Hospital. She was discharged soon after.


Humiliated by her ordeal, she stopped working for Sharma’s household on April 11, 2021 and had a new employer about two months later.
She also suffered a loss of income of more than $950 and Sharma compensated her on Sept 26, 2022.
On Thursday, the DPP urged the court to sentence the housewife to at least five months’ jail, stressing that the abuse took place in the privacy of her home, making it difficult to detect.

He added: “The accused not only targeted the victim’s face, which is a vulnerable part of her body, but also used a toy to hit her.
“In addition, the accused threw (vomit) at the face and head region of the victim which made the victim feel humiliated.”
Defence lawyer Amarjit Singh Sidhu pleaded for leniency.
He told the court that Sharma is prone to anxiety attacks and had attended a few sessions at The Centre for Psychology.
The lawyer from Amarjit Sidhu Law added: “Monica is currently undergoing therapy regularly and has expressed that she is committed to receiving therapy for her personal, marital and family well-being.
“This particular incident has scared her, and she realises how her mental health affects not only her, but the rest of her family members as well.”
Sharma’s bail was set at $10,000 on Thursday, and she is expected to surrender herself at the State Courts on May 23 to begin serving her sentence.

 

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Man punches 66-year-old following argument; victim hits his head and dies in hospital​

Samuel Devaraj

May 23, 2023

SINGAPORE - Following an argument, Salvaduri Ahpiah Maniam punched a man he was having drinks with. The victim fell, hit his head and later died in hospital.
Mr Woo Jit Kuen, 66, was about 33kg – about half of Salvaduri’s weight – and 4cm taller than him at about 163cm.
On Monday, the 53-year-old stateless man was sentenced to three years, six months and three days’ jail after he pleaded guilty to three charges, including one of voluntarily causing hurt that leads to grievous hurt.
The other two charges were for confronting a member of the public while drunk in a public place and breaching Covid-19 rules by meeting two friends to drink alcohol, eat and chat at a public place on April 18, 2020, during the circuit breaker period.
Court proceedings were ongoing against him for these two offences when he punched the victim.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Huo Jiongrui said Salvaduri arrived at Block 448 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 10 at about 2.30pm on July 3, 2022, on his bicycle, having had a can of beer.
He went to the nearby Singapore Pools outlet, intending to place bets, but decided to do so later after noticing a long queue.

He then saw two groups outside a McDonald’s outlet drinking beer and, recognising some of the people in the groups, he joined them.
At about 3.30pm, only Salvaduri, his friend S. Ponniah and Mr Woo remained. Salvaduri and Mr Woo, who did not know each other, were both drunk.
An argument soon broke out between Salvaduri and Mr Woo. It was not clear why they were arguing.
Mr Woo grabbed Salvaduri’s T-shirt and, angered by this and the argument, Salvaduri punched the victim in the face.
Mr Woo fell backwards and hit the concrete floor, and began to bleed from the back of his head.
Salvaduri soon realised that Mr Woo was not moving and that a pool of blood was forming on the floor.
Salvaduri called for an ambulance, but said Mr Woo had tripped, deliberately omitting that he had punched him to avoid arrest.
He similarly lied to police officers and paramedics who arrived at the scene. After speaking to a police officer, he left on his bicycle.
Mr Woo, who was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, suffered extensive brain injury and died two days later.

DPP Huo said significant police resources were expended to ascertain Salvaduri’s whereabouts, and he was arrested on July 7, 2022.
The prosecutor, who asked the court to sentence Salvaduri to four years’ jail for the attack, said: “Instead of using his significantly larger size and relative sobriety to resolve the dispute in a peaceful manner, the accused chose to punch the deceased on his face in anger.”
District Judge Lee Lit Cheng sentenced Salvaduri, who was represented by Mr Don Tan, to three years and six months’ jail for the offence.
She said that the victim was not particularly vulnerable, unlike a recent case involving a man who pleaded guilty to the same charge in February.
In that case, Allan Chua Kim Wee, 36, charged at and hit a 74-year-old man whom he saw advancing towards him with a walking stick. The elderly man fell and died later that day.
Before the attack, a confrontation had ensued between the two. Chua had taken photos of the older man with his phone, having spotted him smoking at a void deck and wanting to file a complaint. Chua was jailed four years for the offence.
For voluntarily causing hurt that leads to grievous hurt, Salvaduri could have been jailed for up to five years, fined up to $10,000, or both.

 

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Man jailed for duping employer and its sister firm into paying over $5.1m to companies linked to him​

Hussain Naina Mohamed was sentenced to 30 months’ jail on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to nine counts of cheating. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

May 25, 2023

SINGAPORE – An assistant shipping manager at a construction firm duped his employer and its sister company into making payments totalling over $5.1 million to other companies linked to him.
Hussain Naina Mohamed, a 47-year-old Indian national, was sentenced to 30 months’ jail on Thursday after he pleaded guilty to nine counts of cheating involving more than $2.5 million and one count of moving a portion of his ill-gotten gains out of Singapore.
Sixteen other charges, including those involving the remaining amount, were considered during sentencing.
The payments took place between 2009 and 2019, causing at least $500,000 in losses to Utracon Corporation.
Hussain worked for construction firm Utracon Structural Systems, which is part of Utracon Corporation, until January 2019.
As an assistant shipping manager, his responsibilities included making vendor recommendations to his superiors. He also helped Utracon Overseas, which is also part of Utracon Corporation, with similar tasks.
Among other things, Hussain failed to inform his employer that he was a partner at a company called Al Rahman Enterprises & Trading (Aret).

Instead, he recommended Aret to be his employer’s vendor for marine insurance as well as freight-forwarding services.
Hussain also recommended to his superiors his father’s firm, SM Enterprises (SME), as a vendor to supply plastic components.
The prosecution said that Utracon would not have awarded jobs to these firms had it known about the blatant conflict of interest with regard to Hussain.


As the companies linked to Hussain did provide services to Utracon as its vendors, Utracon’s financial loss amounted to at least $500,000 as a result of the cheating. This loss included the illicit profit Hussain made from the offences.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Tay Jingxi said that Hussain and his sister were partners at Aret, which was registered in June 2009 and provided marine insurance as well as freight-forwarding services.
Hussain admitted that he had set up the firm solely to earn some cash from Utracon. He was also the only one making all business decisions for Aret while his sister was the “face” of the firm, said the prosecution. This was because he knew that he could not be seen by Utracon to be involved in Aret.
As a result of his dishonest concealment, Utracon was induced to award jobs to Aret and paid it more than $705,000.

In May 2011, Hussain approached Utracon’s director of Singapore operations and offered to source for an alternative supplier of plastic components that would purportedly offer better rates than its supplier at that time.
Hussain then liaised with an Indian company called Vijay Industries to fabricate the plastic parts that Utracon required, and arranged for his father’s firm, the India-registered SME, to export these plastic parts to Utracon.
Hussain did not tell the director that SME belonged to his father and that the plastic components were actually manufactured by Vijay Industries, with SME only marking up the prices.
As a result of Hussain’s dishonest concealment of facts, Utracon was induced to award jobs to SME and paid it more than $1.4 million.
Hussain also worked with a director of a firm called Indus Global Line (IGL) to cheat Utracon.
In 2011, the pair entered into an illicit agreement for IGL to submit inflated quotations to Utracon for freight-forwarding services, with Hussain determining the quantum of each mark-up.
Hussain then validated all the inflated quotations before submitting them for Utracon’s approval. As a result, Utracon paid IGL nearly $375,000.
On six occasions between May 2014 and November 2017, Hussain removed from Singapore nearly $142,000 of his ill-gotten gains by methods that include engaging the services of local remittance agents.
He later told investigators that he had sent the money to India to help cover his parents’ household expenses.

 

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Ex-chief priest of Sri Mariamman Temple jailed for repeatedly pawning temple jewellery for over S$2 million​

The crimes went undetected for almost five years as Kandasamy Senapathi would return the jewellery before scheduled audits.

Kandasamy Senapathi, ex-chief priest of Sri Mariamman temple, outside the State Courts on May 30, 2023. (Photo: CNA/Syamil Sapari)

Lydia Lam​

@LydiaLamCNA
30 May 2023

SINGAPORE: Over almost five years, the chief priest of Singapore's oldest Hindu temple misused ceremonial jewellery by pawning it repeatedly - to the tune of over S$2 million (US$1.5 million).
Kandasamy Senapathi, 39, was caught only when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, throwing the regular audit timing off and revealing the missing jewellery.
Kandasamy was sentenced to six years' jail on Tuesday (May 30) for his crimes.
He pleaded guilty to two charges of criminal breach of trust by dishonest misappropriation and two charges of transferring criminal proceeds out of the country. Another six charges were considered in sentencing.
The court heard that Kandasamy, an Indian national, was employed by the Hindu Endowments Board as a priest at Sri Mariamman Temple from December 2013 until he resigned on Mar 30, 2020.
He first served as the second-in-charge to the temple's chief priest, before being promoted to the role of chief priest in July 2018 when his predecessor retired.
Kandasamy was entrusted with the keys and combination number code to the safe in the temple's holy sanctum sometime in 2014.
The safe contained 255 pieces of gold jewellery owned by the temple, with a book value of about S$1.1 million.
The jewellery was used to adorn Hindu deities during special prayers or temple events, and Kandasamy was tasked with retrieving and returning the jewellery on such occasions.
Kandasamy was the only person with the keys and access to the safe containing the jewellery.
He began pawning pieces of the jewellery in 2016, taking them to pawn shops and later redeeming them by using money he obtained from pawning other pieces of temple jewellery.
In 2016 alone, Kandasamy pawned 66 pieces of gold jewellery from the temple on 172 occasions. He redeemed all the jewellery and returned it back to the temple without anyone knowing.
He continued this practice between 2016 and 2020, rolling the cash and returning the jewellery whenever he knew an audit was scheduled.
His actions went undetected as he was able to borrow enough money to redeem the pawned jewellery before scheduled audits.
Once the audit was completed, he would pawn the jewellery again so he could return the money he had borrowed.
The total amount of cash disbursed to Kandasamy by the pawn shops from 2016 to 2020 was S$2,328,760.
He deposited some of the money into his personal bank account and remitted about S$141,000 to India.

Former chief priest of Sri Mariamman Temple Kandasamy Senapathi. (Photo: Facebook/Hindu Endowments Board)

CRIMES UNCOVERED​

In March 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, the temple had to delay an external audit because of the "circuit breaker" measures forbidding non-essential activity in the country.
However, a member of the temple's finance team arranged for an audit to be conducted during Phase 2 of the circuit breaker between July 2020 and August 2020.
In June 2020, this staff member was arranging for the audit when Kandasamy told him that he did not have the key to the safe. He said he had likely left the key in India while he was visiting family.
However, the staff member insisted that the audit had to be done, and Kandasamy eventually confessed to him that he had taken the jewellery for pawning.
At the time, 17 pieces of jewellery were with two pawn shops. Kandasamy borrowed about S$521,000 from friends and went with the temple employee to redeem the jewellery.
In the end, all the jewellery was returned to the temple and the temple suffered no loss, said the prosecutor.
The member of the temple's finance team later filed a police report.
Kandasamy then resigned from his post as he felt guilty for pawning the temple's jewellery, added the prosecutor.
She asked for seven years' jail, pointing to the high pawn value of the jewellery involved.
Defence lawyer Mohan Das Naidu asked for about three years' jail instead. He said there was no loss to the temple and his client had kept his word, with the jewellery eventually redeemed even before the temple made a police report.
Mr Naidu said it all started when Kandasamy wanted to help a friend raise funds for cancer, and also to help schools and temples in India.
However, it "got out of hand". The lawyer said what Kandasamy did was wrong, but stressed that there was no loss to the temple as the jewellery was returned.
He said Kandasamy's intention was "never to deprive the temple" of its jewellery, but he was "caught up in this vicious cycle of pawning and redeeming, pawning and redeeming".
"It's a very stupid venture," added the lawyer.
Mr Naidu said Kandasamy's personal benefit was only about S$141,000, the sum he remitted back to India.
However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Janice See said the figure cited did not take into account money that Kandasamy had not deposited into his bank account.
She said it was therefore likely that Kandasamy's monetary benefit was higher than the S$141,000 sum.
Ms See said the offending conduct took place over about five years, and was only revealed by the unprecedented events of the COVID-19 pandemic.
She added that, in this case, the real mischief is not in the fact that he did not lose the jewellery - but that he used temple jewellery that did not belong to him and was in fact for sacred use, in order to generate a side income.
In sentencing, the judge said he could not ignore the fact that the case involved about S$2 million, which is a significant amount and higher than any previous similar cases.

The Sri Mariamman Temple . (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

HINDU ENDOWMENTS BOARD TIGHTENS CONTROLS​

In a statement after the hearing, the Hindu Endowments Board (HEB) said it had commissioned a gold audit after the incident at its four temples - Sri Mariamman, Sri Srinivasa Perumal, Sri Sivan and Sri Vairavimada Kaliamman.

The audit confirmed that all jewellery was properly accounted for. An expert goldsmith also certified that the jewellery Kandasamy had returned was authentic.

The board also engaged an independent external firm to conduct a process audit of the four Hindu temples under the board.

The board has since implemented all the audit recommendations on gold management, on top of other internal controls that the board found appropriate.

HEB said it has enhanced the safekeeping and management of gold jewellery in its temples to prevent recurrences of such incidents. It conducts four quarterly audits, including unannounced ones, on its temples.

"HEB has further tightened its governance and internal controls to ensure its charitable assets remain protected," said the board.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

6 years’ jail for Hindu temple chief priest who pawned temple jewellery and received $2.3 million​

From 2016 to 2020, Indian National Kandasamy Senapathi, 39, pawned 66 pieces of the jewellery over 172 occasions. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Samuel Devaraj

May 30, 2023

SINGAPORE – As a priest at Sri Mariamman Temple, he was entrusted with jewellery worth more than $1 million that was used to adorn deities at the temple in South Bridge Road.
However, over five years, Kandasamy Senapathi pawned some of the jewellery, receiving over $2.3 million in total.
On Tuesday, Kandasamy, 39, was jailed for six years, after pleading guilty to two charges of criminal breach of trust by an employee and two counts of removing the benefits of his criminal activities from the jurisdiction.
Six similar charges were taken into consideration during the Indian national’s sentencing.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Janice See said that Kandasamy was employed by the Hindu Endowments Board (HEB) in December 2013 and was promoted to chief priest at the temple in July 2018.
In 2014, he was entrusted with the keys and combination number code to the safe in the temple’s holy sanctum which contained about 255 pieces of gold jewellery valued at about $1.1 million, and was the only person who had access to them.
During special prayers or temple events, Kandasamy would have to retrieve the appropriate jewellery, adorn the deities, and return the items at the end of the ceremony.

From 2016 to 2020, he pawned 66 pieces of the jewellery over 172 occasions.
He was able to carry out more transactions than the number of jewellery by “rolling” the items pawned.
For example, he would pawn a piece of jewellery, receive the pawn proceeds, and then return on another day to redeem the first piece of jewellery by using a second piece of jewellery.

From 2016 to 2020, he received a total amount of $2,328,760.
His activities went undetected as he was able to borrow sufficient money to redeem the pawned jewellery whenever he knew an audit was being scheduled.
Once the audit was completed, the accused would pawn the temple’s jewellery again to return the money borrowed.
The accused deposited a portion of the money he received into his personal bank account and remitted $141,054.90 to India.

Sometime in March 2020, the temple scheduled its routine external audit to ensure that all temple items and valuables were accounted for.
But due to the pandemic, it was delayed and was scheduled to be held between July 22, 2020, and Aug 18, 2020.
In June 2020, Kandasamy informed a member of the temple’s finance team who was arranging for the audit that he did not have the key to the safe, and it was likely that he had left it in India when he went there to visit his family.
However, the finance team member insisted that the audit had to be conducted and informed Kandasamy that the safe may have to be broken open for its contents to be audited.
Realising that the audit will proceed as planned, Kandasamy confessed on July 2, 2020, to pawning the jewellery, and a police report was lodged on July 29, 2020.
All 66 pieces of jewellery he pawned have since been returned to the temple, which suffered no loss.
Kandasamy is no longer with the HEB.
In court on Tuesday, Kandasamy was represented by Mr Mohan Das Naidu.
When asked by District Judge Shaiffudin Saruwan what his client’s motivation was, the lawyer said that he had initially wanted to help some friends in India, including one whose mother was suffering from cancer, as well as some schools back home.
“That’s how it started, and it got out of hand,” said Mr Mohan.
He also described his client’s action as a stupid venture and said that the temple suffered no losses and that his intention was not to cause loss to the temple.
In response, DPP See said that the real mischief was that he had used jewellery entrusted to him to generate a side income and that it was merely fortuitous that they had been returned to the temple.
Kandasamy could have been jailed for up to 15 years and fined for each count of criminal breach of trust.
He could have been jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to $500,000, or both for each count of removing the benefits of his criminal activities from the jurisdiction.