Ah nehs...

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#16


Pakistani man jailed for lying in PR application and submitting fake degree in 1997

Selina Lum
Law Correspondent
UPDATED AUG 27, 2020

SINGAPORE - More than 20 years ago, a Pakistani national applying to be a permanent resident lied in the form that his highest academic qualification was an arts degree from the University of Punjab.

Mohammad Sohail, whose highest educational qualification in reality was the equivalent of the GCE A levels in Singapore, also submitted a forged degree to support his application.

The 51-year-old on Thursday (Aug 27) failed in his appeal to the High Court against a three-week jail sentence handed down by a district court in December last year.
In dismissing the appeal, Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said that based on sentencing guidelines for such cases, the starting point was a custodial term of two to four weeks.

The Chief Justice noted that the district judge, in imposing three weeks' jail, had taken into account that Sohail had shown remorse by readily owning up to his wrongdoing.

Sohail first arrived in Singapore in 1995 on an employment pass and married a Singaporean woman the following year.

Some time between September and October 1997, he applied for permanent residency and falsely stated that he held a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Punjab.
To boost his chances, he submitted a bogus degree, which he had obtained from his cousin in Pakistan, with the application.

Court documents state that the academic qualification of the applicant is "one of the material considerations" in the granting of PR status.


Sohail's application was approved in December 1997.

The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said the offences were uncovered during an internal check. Soheil was first charged in court in September last year, more than 21 years after being granted PR status.

This fact was highlighted by the district judge, to make the point that such deception was difficult to detect as it would take a considerable length of time to get verification from the foreign academic authorities.

On Thursday, defence counsel Mahmood Gaznavi said his client's actions were motivated by his desire to be with his wife and first child, a Singapore citizen, who was born in March 1997.

Sohail subsequently had another two children, who are also Singapore citizens.

Mr Gaznavi argued that his client, who ran his own company, did not rely on his PR status to seek employment or obtain any advantage for his children.

ICA will consider each case carefully before deciding whether to revoke the PR status of a person convicted of offences, a spokesman told ST.

 

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#17

Lawyer who submitted forged degree gets struck off the rolls

Selina Lum
Law Correspondent
PUBLISHED JAN 22, 2019, 5:51 PM SGT

SINGAPORE - A young lawyer hoping to improve her chances of getting a job in the Singapore Legal Service submitted a forged transcript that reflected better grades in 2013.

The 25-year-old did not land the job.

When Ms Jaya Anil Kumar applied a second time more than three years later, she doctored her National University of Singapore (NUS) law degree certificate as well.
On Tuesday (Jan 22), Ms Jaya, now 30, was struck off the rolls.

Called to the Bar in July 2012, she had not applied for a practising certificate since August 2014.

The Law Society referred her case to the Court of Three Judges, which can suspend or disbar lawyers, after she was fined $10,000 in January last year for using forged documents.

Handing down the court's decision to strike her off, Judge of Appeal Tay Yong Kwang said her conduct showed "a consistent trend of resorting to dishonest means" to get the job she wanted.

"We do not see how being consumed about wanting a particular career mitigates the offences of forgery of one's academic credentials," he added.

The court, which also comprised Justices Belinda Ang and Quentin Loh, said the criminal acts were "grave and indefensible" but noted that Ms Jaya was capable of change.

"During the coming years, she will have to reorder her young life, refocus on what is truly important, show the fruits of repentance and make a good case for the court to reinstate her as an advocate and solicitor some time in the future."

Ms Jaya graduated from NUS in 2011 with a second class (lower) law degree. After she was called to the Bar, she was retained at a large law firm.

In January 2013, she applied to the Legal Service Commission (LSC), submitting a doctored transcript that reflected better grades for 21 out of 27 subjects. She landed an interview but was not offered a job.

In October 2016, she altered her degree to state that she had a second class (upper) degree as well as her transcript to reflect better grades for 18 out of 27 subjects.

When the LSC secretariat contacted her to seek her consent to ask NUS for her class and and percentile rankings, she declined.

Asked about the differences in the documents for both applications, she claimed she had "mis-scanned" them and might have mixed up the documents with a friend's.
That evening, she e-mailed her genuine documents to the secretariat, which made a police report.

On Tuesday, the Law Society, represented by Ms Smitha Menon, asked for a striking off, which is typically warranted when lawyers are convicted of offences involving dishonesty.

Her lawyer, Mr Abraham Vergis, sought a suspension, arguing that she was "redeemable". He told the court that she was young and inexperienced at the time and that she was motivated by her dream to pursue a career in international law.

 

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#18

Highest-ranked Singaporean polo player gets jail for lying in citizenship application

Abdul Sattar Khan, who has been shortlisted to represent Singapore in the SEA Games this November in the Philippines, was sentenced on July 18 to two weeks' jail.
ST PHOTO: WONG KWAI CHOW

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent
UPDATED JUL 19, 2019

SINGAPORE - A Pakistan-born polo player, said by his lawyer to be Singapore’s highest-ranked, was sentenced to jail Thursday (July 18) for giving false information 13 years ago in his application for permanent residency.

The application was granted and two years later, Abdul Sattar Khan, who is currently a polo manager at the Singapore Polo Club, again submitted forged documents when applying to become a Singaporean.

His Singapore citizenship was issued on July 31, 2009.

He was sentenced on Thursday (July 18) to two weeks’ jail after pleading guilty to one count each of an offence under the Immigration Act and another under the Third Schedule of the Constitution of the Republic of Singapore, which pertains to citizenship.

Court documents did not state if his citizenship would be affected following his conviction.

On Thursday, his lawyer told the court he has been shortlisted to represent the country in the sport at the Southeast Asian Games (SEA Games) this November in the Philippines.

According to defence lawyer Thomas Sim, Khan was also the deputy national polo team coach for the 2007 and 2017 SEA Games and has been recognised as the highest ranked polo player in all of Southeast Asia.

Mr Sim told District Judge Mathew Joseph that his client started playing polo at 11 and turned professional six years later.

Khan visited Singapore around 1994, and was invited by the Singapore Polo Club to be a guest umpire and player in a tournament being held at the time.

Impressed by his performance, the club offered him a job as a polo instructor and horse trainer, the court heard.

Khan took up the offer and held an employment pass when he started his job the following year. He became a polo manager at the club six years later.
On Thursday, Deputy Public Prosecutor Chong Yun Ling said Khan first applied to become a Singapore PR in 2000.

But he lied in his application form to the ICA, falsely claiming that he had attended Garden East School in Pakistan for his secondary education.

The application was rejected and he tried again on April 6, 2006. This time, he lied that he had attended Ibrahim Ali Bhai Secondary School.

He also enclosed a forged certificate and results, purportedly from the school, to bolster his chances of success.

DPP Chong said that in reality, Khan had attended a village school called the Government Elementally (sic) School Boti Mianwali.

After becoming a Singapore PR, Khan decided to become a citizen and submitted similar false information to the ICA in Kallang Road on Sept 9, 2008. He became a Singapore citizen the following year.

Mr Sim said that the school Khan had attended was a rural one that did not award a formal certificate for the completion of his studies. The lawyer added that Khan had called his father in Pakistan and asked for the older man's help to retrieve information about it.

His father later engaged an agent to obtain a certificate purportedly from the Ibrahim Ali Bhai Secondary School.

The lawyer also said that Khan's son is a Singaporean who has completed his national service. Khan's wife and two daughters are Singapore PRs.

Before handing down the sentence, Judge Joseph noted that Khan had contributed to society. However, he added: "You cannot run away from what you did... The integrity of the immigration system must be maintained."

In a statement on Thursday, the Singapore National Olympic Council said that it had not received nominations from the Equestrian Federation of Singapore for the SEA Games.

Khan is now out on bail of $10,000 and was ordered to surrender himself at the State Courts on July 23 to begin serving his sentence.

For the offence under the Immigration Act, he could have been jailed for up to a year and fined up to $4,000.

 

[sweetiepie]

KNN my uncle always beware of ah neh gangster with long tail behind KNN they are all violent animals KNN

 

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#19

Man charged with murder of S'pore teen missing for over 13 years; police looking for another suspect

Ahmad Danial Mohamed Rafa’ee (left) was accused of murdering Ms Felicia Teo Wei Ling.PHOTOS: DANIAL ENEMIKO/FACEBOOK, THE NEW PAPER
Cara Wong and Jean Iau

17 DEC 2020


SINGAPORE - A man was charged on Thursday (Dec 17) with the murder of a female arts student more than 13 years after her disappearance.

Ahmad Danial Mohamed Rafa’ee, 35, appeared in a district court via a video-link and was accused of murdering Ms Felicia Teo Wei Ling, 19, on June 30, 2007, between 1.39am and 7.20am at a 10th-floor unit of Block 19 Marine Terrace.

The bespectacled man - who wore his hair long, had ear piercings and was handcuffed - had a blank expression when the charge was read out to him.

According to court documents, Ahmad Danial allegedly worked together with another man, Ragil Putra Setia Sukmarahjana, 32, to commit the crime.

Ahmad Danial has been remanded for investigations and is scheduled to return to court on Dec 24. The court heard that he is on medical leave.

The police said in a statement earlier on Thursday that Ahmad Danial was arrested on Tuesday.

They are searching for Ragil Putra Setia who they believe is not in Singapore.

They are also searching for Ms Teo's remains.

"Preliminary investigations revealed Felicia had died before the report was lodged on July 3, 2007," said the police, referring to the missing persons report lodged by Ms Teo's mother.

Ms Teo and the two men were believed to be friends, and the 19-year-old was believed to be last seen entering a lift with the duo at a Housing Board block in Marine Terrace in June 2007.

However, in interviews with the police then, both men had maintained that Ms Teo left the flat of her own accord in the wee hours of June 30 that year, said the police statement.

The police said they conducted extensive investigations, including searching the unit and closed-circuit television footage around the vicinity of the unit, but did not find anything incriminating.

The case was classified as a missing persons case, as the police did not find any facts to link the two men to her disappearance, the statement added.

The police said they regularly review unsolved missing persons cases for further leads. Interviews with Ms Teo's family and other witnesses were conducted during regular reviews. Police also checked on Ms Teo's bank accounts, e-mails and social media platforms to see if there were new digital footprints.

Ahmad Danial is accused of murdering Ms Teo at a 10th-floor unit of Block 19 Marine Terrace. PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM GOOGLE MAPS

After a review in July this year, the case was referred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), "given that the case has been unsolved for an extended period of time".

The police added that this is part of a process where selected cases that have been outstanding for a "protracted period of time" are surfaced to the CID for review.

A breakthrough came after the CID uncovered new leads while tracing the belongings that were believed to be in Ms Teo's possession when she was reported missing, said the police. Media reports then said Ms Teo had her mobile phone and laptop with her, among other items, when she vanished.

The CID had managed to link one of the properties to the 35-year-old suspect, and he was arrested, said the police.

Director of CID, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police How Kwang Hwee, said: "I would like to commend the investigators for their hard work and determination to solve the case. The investigators managed to uncover new leads to throw light on what might have happened to the victim, identify the suspect and arrested him."

PHOTO: SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE

Ms Teo's case had triggered a nationwide search back in 2007, and attracted a lot of media attention.

Over 200 of her family and friends launched a frantic hunt for the then student of Lasalle College of the Arts, distributing thousands of fliers bearing her photograph.
They combed areas like Geylang, Yishun and Woodlands, and even extended their search to Johor Baru, where they spent a day showing photos of Ms Teo to strangers and asking if they had seen her.

If charged and convicted of murder, he faces the death sentence.

 

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#20

5 men charged after allegedly rioting along Eu Tong Sen Street

Screengrabs of what appears to be the incident and an officer at the scene. (Screengrab from Facebook/Navin Kumar)
By Keval Singh
22 Dec 2020

SINGAPORE: Five men were charged on Tuesday (Dec 22) after they were allegedly involved in a case of rioting at Clarke Quay on Saturday night.

Four of them were charged with being members of an unlawful assembly outside The Tipsy Cow at Eu Tong Sen Street at about 10.40pm on Saturday.

They are 27-year-old Victor Alexander Arumugam, 26-year-old Mathan Raj Kunasegaran, 33-year-old Shankar Ganesh Velusamy and 22-year-old Lashwin Kumar Manimaran.

The fifth man, 30-year-old Sahadev Kumar Thritraj, was charged with causing grievous hurt with a knife. He allegedly used the weapon to stab a man during the brawl, court documents said.

A fight had broken out between two groups of people along Eu Tong Sen Street at around 10.40pm on Saturday, the police said on Sunday.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found and attended to two injured people. A 27-year-old woman and a 36-year-old man were conscious when they were taken to Singapore General Hospital.

A total of 12 people have been arrested since the incident on Saturday night. Of these, five men were arrested over the weekend, four of whom were charged on Monday with rioting armed with a deadly weapon.

Two other men, aged 26 and 31, are to be charged on Wednesday with voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous means and rioting with a deadly weapon respectively.

Investigations into a 22-year-old woman's involvement are ongoing.

Anyone found guilty of being a member of an unlawful assembly can be jailed for up to two years, fined, or both.

Anyone found guilty of voluntarily causing grievous hurt by dangerous means can be jailed for life or imprisoned for up to 15 years, and caned or fined.

Those found guilty of rioting with a deadly weapon can be jailed for up to 10 years and caned.

 

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#21

Two men given $3 million by late doctor with dementia ordered to return money

Kulandaivelu Malayaperumal (left) and Gopal Subramaniam (right) have been ordered by the court to return the $3 million given to them by late doctor.
PHOTOS: LIANHE ZAOBAO, LAU FOOK KONG

Selina Lum
Law Correspondent
PUBLISHED MAY 15, 2017

SINGAPORE - When a retired doctor was asked to subtract seven from 100, the octogenarian, who had dementia, answered 200.

The late Dr Freda Paul's inability to do a simple arithmetic calculation in December 2009 was one of the reasons cited by the High Court on Monday (May 15) when it found that she lacked the mental capacity to carry out acts of making gifts in 2010, when she gave away $5 million to her maid, a construction worker and an engineer.

Judicial Commissioner Debbie Ong ordered construction worker Kulandaivelu Malayaperumal to return $2 million to Dr Paul's estate. Engineer Gopal Subramaniam was ordered to return $912,000.

A default judgment had earlier been obtained against the Sri Lankan maid Arulampalam Kanthimathy, who received $2 million.

The trio had cut Dr Paul off from her relatives and friends and made her live in unclean conditions, including sleeping on newspapers spread out on her bed.

Dr Paul, who died in August last year at the age of 87, was a paediatrician at Singapore General Hospital. She was single and her sole asset was a house in Haig Road, which was sold in 2009 for $15.4 million.

In 2001, she befriended Mr Malayaperumal, a worker at a nearby construction site, and his supervisor, Mr Subramaniam. Both were from India.

She was then living with her mentally disabled sister and her maid.

In 2007, she willed the bulk of her wealth to be used to set up a bursary fund for needy female medical students at the National University of Singapore. Four cousins in Malaysia were the other beneficiaries.

By May 2009, Mr Malayaperumal would occasionally stay over at her home.

In September 2009, after her sister died, Dr Paul told her lawyer to prepare a power of attorney, authorising Mr Subramaniam to sell the house.

After selling the house, Mr Subramaniam deposited $10 million into her bank account, gave $1 million to Mr Malayaperumal, $1 million to Ms Kanthimathy, and $912,000 to himself. He also used $2.4 million to buy a smaller house in Ceylon Road for Dr Paul.

Six months later, Mr Malayaperumal and Ms Kanthimathy each received another $1 million. Property agent Parvathi Somu, who handled the deals, received $500,000.
The maid was added as a joint holder of Dr Paul's bank account.

Around the same time, Dr Paul made a will, this time leaving most of her assets to Mr Malayaperumal and Ms Kanthimathy. There was no bequest for the bursary fund.

In 2013, her distant relatives, senior counsel Philip Jeyaretnam and Dr Ruhunadevi Joshua, were appointed to be deputies under the Mental Capacity Act to manage Dr Paul's affairs.

Suspecting she had been exploited, they went to court to reinstate the terms in the 2007 will and launched a lawsuit to recover the $5.4 million.

Mr Malayaperumal and Mr Subramaniam contested the suit in a trial this year, during which Mr Jeyaretnam took the stand.

Money recovered from them will go into the NUS bursary fund, said lawyer for the plaintiffs, Mr Herman Jeremiah.

 

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#22

Man jailed for breaking through safe-distancing barricades at Jurong Point, punching security guard

A view of Jurong Point mall.
By Lydia Lam@LydiaLamCNA
20 Jan 2021

SINGAPORE: When told by a security guard to enter Jurong Point via another entrance due to COVID-19 measures, a man broke through safe-distancing barricades at the mall and caused a ruckus inside.

When the guard tried to take him away, the man struggled and punched the guard in his face.

Parma Nadam R Ammayappan, 68, was given four weeks' jail and fined S$1,500 on Wednesday (Jan 20) for his crimes.

He pleaded guilty to three charges of voluntarily causing hurt, behaving in a disorderly manner and absconding, with a fourth charge considered in sentencing.

Parma was at Jurong Point at about 1pm on Sep 24 last year. He told a security officer and his supervisor that he wanted to go to the third floor of the mall.

The security supervisor told Parma to go in by another mall entrance as the entrance they were at was barricaded due to COVID-19 safe-distancing measures.

Parma ignored this and broke through the safe-distancing barricades, with the two guards trailing him and warning him against causing any more trouble.

Parma went up to the third floor before going to a restaurant in the basement where he shouted and asked restaurant diners for food and money.

A restaurant employee sought help from the security staff, and they tried to talk to Prabu and take him to the Fire Command Centre. The security supervisor held Parma's arm to direct him there, but Parma struggled and punched his cheek.

Parma was eventually detained and released on station bail, but absconded for 87 days. He was unrepresented in court and said he was staying alone and was "depressed and oppressed", without anyone to take care of him.

For voluntarily causing hurt, he could have been jailed for up to two years, fined up to S$5,000, or both.

 

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#23


Man jailed 9 months for molesting pregnant woman after following her home

File photo.
By Lydia Lam@LydiaLamCNA
20 Jan 2021

SINGAPORE: A man was given nine months' jail on Wednesday (Jan 20) for molesting a pregnant woman after following her to a lift lobby, cornering her inside the lift and repeatedly blocking her attempts to flee.

Kota Durga Prasad, a 26-year-old painter from India, had been cycling towards a block in Jurong West on the night of Sep 5 last year when he saw the victim crossing a traffic junction.

The 28-year-old woman was visiting her husband, who was working in Singapore, and was three months' pregnant at that time.

Kota thought that the victim "looked pretty" and decided to follow her, said the prosecutor. He cycled behind her to a lift lobby of a housing block, where he approached her and asked for her phone number.

The woman declined and told Kota that she had a husband, but Kota replied that "it was okay to have friendship with her because nowadays maids from India even though they are married, they have boyfriend in Singapore".

The victim entered the lift when it arrived, and Kota followed her. When the woman tried to escape, Kota blocked her several times with his body and hands.

The lift doors closed and the victim was trapped in the lift with Kota, who hugged her and put his face very close to her.

The victim struggled, but Kota pressed his body against her until the lift stopped at the 11th floor. The woman screamed for help, but there was no one else around, and Kota pressed the lift buttons to close the elevator.

As the lift went down, the victim told Kota that she would give him her number and asked him not to hurt her. She gave him her real number, and while Kota was taking it down, he continued to block her exit and press the lift buttons to make sure they would remain inside together.

When the victim tried to escape again after the doors opened, Kota held her back and pressed his face close to her. Thinking he was trying to kiss her, the victim pushed him away, before telling him that she was pregnant.

Kota reached out and rubbed her stomach a few times, but eventually left the elevator, leaving the victim slumped against the lift wall in relief. Kota tried to reopen the lift doors, but failed as the lift had started its ascent.

When he got home, he sent the victim multiple messages and called her repeatedly until midnight. The victim ignored him and contacted her husband, who rushed home and called the police.

ASSAULT WAS PROLONGED AND PERSISTENT: PROSECUTOR

Deputy Public Prosecutor Chong Kee En asked for 10 months' jail and caning, saying that Kota had used "quite a degree of wrongful restraint", and followed the victim for some time.

He was undeterred when the victim told him she had a husband and declined to give him her number, said Mr Chong.

The assault was prolonged and Kota was persistent, exploiting the lift door feature by constantly pressing the buttons to prevent the victim from fleeing.

"Regardless whether they have husbands or are with child, women deserve to be safe and to feel safe," said Mr Chong. "They should not have to fear assault just by going out by their everyday lives."

He added that Kota was "clearly a person who could not take no for an answer regardless of how many times the victim tried verbally or physically".

"We urge the honourable court to send a message that this sort of misogynistic behavior will not be condoned," said the prosecutor.

For outrage of modesty, Kota could have been jailed for up to two years, fined, caned, or given any combination of these punishments.

 

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#24

Man first to be jailed for spate of wire thefts from vacant school that cost S$480,000 in repairs

Screengrab from Google Street View of Singapore Chinese Girls' Primary School.
By Lydia Lam@LydiaLamCNA
21 Jan 2021

SINGAPORE: During the COVID-19 "circuit breaker", a group of men conspired to enter a vacant school and dismantle wires, leaving them behind for another group to collect and transport for sale.

Seven bags of wires were taken from the Singapore Chinese Girls' Primary School in the dead of the night in April last year, with the cost of subsequent repairs amounting to $480,000.

Bangladeshi Rasel, 31, was the first of the second group - tasked with collecting the dismantled wires and moving them - to plead guilty to his involvement on Thursday (Jan 21).

He was given 17 months' jail for house-breaking in order to commit theft, with a second similar charge taken into consideration.

The wire thefts were part of a spate of similar cases in vacant schools last year, but there is no evidence so far to link Rasel's case to wire thefts from Tampines and Jurong Junior Colleges, the court heard.

On Apr 2 last year, Rasel - who goes by one name - was approached by his friend and co-accused Hoque Kazi Romzanul. Hoque asked Rasel and his two roommates if they were interested in getting paid to carry wires out of a school and load them on a lorry to be sold.

Rasel and his roommates agreed. At about 8.15pm the next day, the four men took a taxi to the school in Dunearn Road to steal the wires. Most of them had been dismantled earlier by an unknown group, through the arrangements of a mastermind who has not been identified, said the prosecutor.

CHECKED FOR ALL-CLEAR BEFORE CLIMBING IN OVER FENCE

Outside the school, Rasel's group stood at a nearby overhead bridge to check that it was all clear before climbing over a fence into the school, denting it.

They packed the dismantled wires in the school into sacks, pulling down some that had not been properly removed, filling seven sacks with the items.

After the group kept the wires behind a wall to avoid detection, Hoque called a driver to pick them up, lying to him that their lorry had broken down.

The group loaded the wires onto the lorry in the wee hours of the morning and went to Geylang, where they unloaded the wires. The items were subsequently sold to a shop and the four men returned home.

The next day, Hoque paid Rasel S$45 for the work done, and later asked Rasel and his roommates if they wanted to complete another job.

CAUGHT RED-HANDED ON SECOND ATTEMPT

They agreed and returned to the same school at 6pm on Apr 4, 2020, entering the same way and packing the wires. Rasel saw his roommate trying to tilt a closed-circuit television camera that was mounted on the wall and helped him to do it.

However, employees from the security centre saw that the camera had been tampered with and played back the footage to see Rasel pushing the camera upwards.

At the time, the school was managed by the Singapore Land Authority, which appointed Certis CISCO Security to guard it. The school was unoccupied and there were initial plans to use it as a governmental quarantine facility, but this "did not come to fruition due to unknown reasons", said the prosecutor.

Certis CISCO called the police and a few officers arrived at the school at 11.40pm that day to investigate. Rasel's two roommates saw the police officers and told Rasel and Hoque to hide. They went to the upper levels of a classroom block, but were spotted by the police when they checked all the rooms.

Rasel and Hoque were arrested and the police seized several items including the six sacks of wires, a sack of tools, pairs of gloves and multiple bundles of wires.

The cost of reinstating the dismantled wires and related costs amounted to S$480,000, the court heard. Of this, the cost of supplying new wires alone, based on an estimated 500m of wiring, was about S$25,000.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Wee Yang Xi asked for at least 18 months' jail for Rasel, saying that he had entered the school surreptitiously and that there was a high degree of sophisticated planning as well as "a wider criminal enterprise".

"The offence was planned by an unidentified mastermind who even arranged for the wires to be sold to a shop in the wee hours of the morning," said Mr Wee.

Rasel's group had broken into the school at night and stayed in the compound for hours to carry out their offences "under the concealment of the night and the lower level of watchfulness of the school", he said.

"Even though it was unused, the school was a building with intact facilities and property under the management of the Singapore Land Authority, a statutory board, at the material time."

The dismantling of the wires involved "acts of wanton vandalism" including cutting the wires and pulling out the wire case covers, said Mr Wee.

BORROWED A HUGE SUM TO COME HERE: RASEL

Rasel was undefended and gave his mitigation through an interpreter from his place of remand. He said he came to Singapore to work in January 2020 and was arrested a few months after.

"I borrowed a huge sum to come to Singapore and I was unable to return back the money, your honour. I am the sole breadwinner of my family. My parents are old and they are very sick," he said, asking for a lighter sentence to return home and care for his parents.

Upon questioning by the judge, he said he initially had a work pass and did work for a month but was told the company would close down, and was not given any salary or food.

District Judge Jasbendar Kaur asked the prosecutor if this case was linked to the alleged wire thefts from Tampines Junior College and Jurong Junior College last year.

"I have checked with SPF (Singapore Police Force) on this, and the case DPP for the Jurong and Tampines JC cases - as of now, there is no indication they are related, no evidence suggesting they are connected," answered Mr Wee.

Hoque is claiming trial, said the prosecutor. Of Rasel's two roommates, one intends to claim trial while the other was only recently arrested and investigations are pending.

Judge Kaur told Rasel that he had committed the offence to make money and that there was "a bigger planning at work". She backdated his sentence to his date of remand in April last year.

For house-breaking to commit theft, Rasel could have been jailed up to 10 years and fined. The junior college wire theft cases are pending.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#25

Man fined for riding motorcycle over traffic marshall's foot at swab test centre

File photo of the State Courts in Singapore. (Photo: Calvin Oh)
By Lydia Lam@LydiaLamCNA
26 Jan 2021

SINGAPORE: After completing his swab test at the F1 Pit building, a man refused to comply with a traffic marshall's instructions on how to exit and instead rode his motorcycle over the man's foot.

He also cursed at another traffic marshall as he was unhappy that the exit was very far away.

Sivakumar Sengal Rajan, 51, was fined S$3,000 on Tuesday (Jan 26) for one charge of causing hurt by a rash act and another of using abusive words. A third charge of uttering an expletive at a traffic marshall was taken into consideration.

The court heard that Sivakumar went to the F1 Pit Building along Raffles Boulevard for a swab test on the morning of Nov 8 last year.

After taking the test, he walked towards his motorcycle in the car park at about 9.45am, and saw cones and tape in front of his vehicle.

As the area in front of his motorcycle was cordoned off, he could not ride the vehicle forward to exit and instead had to make reverse the bike and make a detour.

A 54-year-old traffic marshall at the scene told Sivakumar to make the short detour and refused to remove the cones and tape when Sivakumar asked him to.

Sivakumar cursed at the traffic marshall and inched his motorcycle forward, causing the cones and tape to fall, before running his bike over the marshall's foot.
The marshall suffered a slight injury to his shin and did not seek medical attention.

As Sivakumar rode out, another traffic marshall directed him towards the appropriate exit, but Sivakumar was unhappy that the exit was "very far away", the prosecutor said.

He shouted an expletive at the woman before riding off.

In mitigation, Sivakumar said he had been stressed out that day and was late for work. He had to go for his swab test in a hurry and lost his cool, he said.

He said he works as a security guard, and has children and a wife who depend on him.

For causing hurt by a rash act, he could have been jailed for up to a year, fined up to S$5,000 or both. For using abusive words, he could have been jailed up to six months, fined up to S$5,000,or both.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#26

Valet driver jailed for stealing client's S$15,000 Hublot watch, father flew to London to buy it back

The Hublot King Power Red Devil Manchester United. (Photo: chrono24.com)
By Lydia Lam@LydiaLamCNA
28 Jan 2021

SINGAPORE: A former part-time valet driver was jailed seven weeks on Thursday (Jan 28) for stealing a S$15,000 Hublot watch from a client who was drunk.
After he sold the watch in London for £4,000 (S$7,300), the valet's father flew to Britain to buy it back and return it to the victim.

Maheson Pillai Paneerselvam, 31, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft of a Hublot King Power Red Devil Manchester United watch from the floor of the victim's car.
The court heard that Maheson was an airline steward who also provided valet driving services at the time of the offence.

At about 12.30am on Oct 11, 2019, the victim parked his car along Spottiswoode Park Road and left his watch at the gear area before going to drink at a nearby pub.
At about 2am, he was too drunk to drive home, so he engaged a valet service to drive him and his friend home. When Maheson got into the car, he saw the victim's watch on the floor mat at the driver's side.

After dropping the victim off, he pocketed the watch before collecting his payment and leaving.

He later sold the watch to a secondhand shop in London for £4,000 and exchanged the cash to S$6,600.

The victim realised the next morning that his watch was missing and obtained Maheson's particulars from the valet service company. He lodged a police report saying that his watch was missing, and Maheson was arrested on Oct 30, 2019.

He admitted to stealing the watch. His father went to London on Nov 13, 2019, and bought the watch back, returning it to the victim when he came back to Singapore.

District Judge Marvin Bay told Maheson that he had exploited the trust of the victim, who was too drunk to drive.

The judge said he noted that Maheson's father had taken the effort to buy the watch back from London.

"There is an exceptional effort to restore the watch to the victim," said Judge Bay.

"This act to restore the watch to the victim, despite being after-the-fact, is conduct that should be encouraged and incentivised by due consideration in sentencing, as the watch may well have sentimental or intangible value over and beyond its monetary value. And the extraordinary measures taken to restore the watch to the victim must show as a genuine expression of remorse and contrition."

However, he said he could not ignore the substantial value of the timepiece.

For theft, Maheson could have been jailed up to three years, fined, or both.

 

[glockman]

Valet driver jailed for stealing client's S$15,000 Hublot watch, father flew to London to buy it back
View attachment 102833
The Hublot King Power Red Devil Manchester United. (Photo: chrono24.com)
By Lydia Lam@LydiaLamCNA
28 Jan 2021

SINGAPORE: A former part-time valet driver was jailed seven weeks on Thursday (Jan 28) for stealing a S$15,000 Hublot watch from a client who was drunk.
After he sold the watch in London for £4,000 (S$7,300), the valet's father flew to Britain to buy it back and return it to the victim.

Maheson Pillai Paneerselvam, 31, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft of a Hublot King Power Red Devil Manchester United watch from the floor of the victim's car.
The court heard that Maheson was an airline steward who also provided valet driving services at the time of the offence.

At about 12.30am on Oct 11, 2019, the victim parked his car along Spottiswoode Park Road and left his watch at the gear area before going to drink at a nearby pub.
At about 2am, he was too drunk to drive home, so he engaged a valet service to drive him and his friend home. When Maheson got into the car, he saw the victim's watch on the floor mat at the driver's side.

After dropping the victim off, he pocketed the watch before collecting his payment and leaving.

He later sold the watch to a secondhand shop in London for £4,000 and exchanged the cash to S$6,600.

The victim realised the next morning that his watch was missing and obtained Maheson's particulars from the valet service company. He lodged a police report saying that his watch was missing, and Maheson was arrested on Oct 30, 2019.

He admitted to stealing the watch. His father went to London on Nov 13, 2019, and bought the watch back, returning it to the victim when he came back to Singapore.

District Judge Marvin Bay told Maheson that he had exploited the trust of the victim, who was too drunk to drive.

The judge said he noted that Maheson's father had taken the effort to buy the watch back from London.

"There is an exceptional effort to restore the watch to the victim," said Judge Bay.

"This act to restore the watch to the victim, despite being after-the-fact, is conduct that should be encouraged and incentivised by due consideration in sentencing, as the watch may well have sentimental or intangible value over and beyond its monetary value. And the extraordinary measures taken to restore the watch to the victim must show as a genuine expression of remorse and contrition."

However, he said he could not ignore the substantial value of the timepiece.

For theft, Maheson could have been jailed up to three years, fined, or both.

oooBlow makes some of the ugliest watches on the face of the earth.

 

[laksaboy]

Chow Yun Fatt taught us how to deal with ah nehs.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#27
16-year-old Singaporean detained under ISA for planning terrorist attacks on two mosques

The youth bought a tactical vest from an online platform and had found his choice machete on Carousell but had not purchased it yet.
PHOTOS: INTERNAL SECURITY DEPARTMENT

Lim Min Zhang

JAN 27, 2021

SINGAPORE - A 16-year-old Singaporean student has been detained under the Internal Security Act (ISA) for planning to attack two mosques and kill worshippers in Singapore on March 15 this year - the second anniversary of the Christchurch terror attacks.

A Protestant Christian of Indian ethnicity, he is the first detainee to be influenced by far-right extremist ideology and the youngest person detained under the ISA for terrorism-related activities to date, said the Internal Security Department (ISD) on Wednesday (Jan 27).

The Secondary 4 Normal (Academic) student was found to have made detailed plans and preparations to conduct terrorist attacks using a machete against Muslims at two mosques here, the ISD said.

He had chosen Assyafaah Mosque in Sembawang - which he intended to attack first - and Yusof Ishak Mosque in Woodlands as his targets because they were near his home, it added.

Influenced by the Christchurch attacker Brenton Tarrant, the youth had mapped out his route and bought a flak jacket. He intended to buy a machete on online marketplace Carousell and wanted to live-stream his planned massacre.

"He was self-radicalised, motivated by a strong antipathy towards Islam and a fascination with violence. He watched the live-streamed video of the terrorist attack on the two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand and read the manifesto of the attacker, Brenton Tarrant," said the ISD.

He had also watched Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) propaganda videos, and came to the erroneous conclusion that ISIS represented Islam, and that Islam called on its followers to kill non-believers, said the ISD.

The ISD said it was clear from his attack plans and preparations that this youth was influenced by Tarrant's actions and manifesto.

First, he planned to carry out his attacks on the anniversary of the Christchurch attacks. He had conducted online reconnaissance and research on both mosques to prepare for the attack.

He also planned to drive between the two attack sites like Tarrant, and therefore devised a plan to procure a vehicle to use during the attack, said the ISD.

In response to media queries, an ISD spokesman said the lack of a driving licence did not deter the youth. “He had viewed an online instructional video on driving and was confident he would be able to operate a vehicle,” added the spokesman.

He had planned to use a BlueSG car and intended to steal his father’s credit card to rent one.

He had watched videos on renting a BlueSG car and on operating an automatic transmission vehicle.

The youth had chosen Assyafaah Mosque in Sembawang (left) and Yusof Ishak Mosque in Woodlands as his targets.
PHOTOS: SCREENGRAB FROM GOOGLE MAPS, ST FILE

Third, he bought a tactical vest from Carousell last November, and intended to adorn the vest with right-wing extremist symbols and modify it so that he could strap on his mobile device to live-stream the attack, just like Tarrant did.

Detailed planning, preparation

The youth had explored various other options before deciding on the machete as his attack weapon, said the ISD.

His original plan was to use a rifle similar to that used by Tarrant. He managed to find a prospective seller via a private chat platform, but did not follow through with the purchase when he suspected it was a scam.

He nevertheless persisted in his search for firearms online, and did research online on firearms licensing requirements in Singapore. He also looked into the feasibility of joining the Singapore Rifle Association in order to gain access to firearms.

The youth gave up the idea only when he realised that it would be difficult to get his hands on one, given Singapore's strict gun-control laws, the ISD said.

He also explored making a triacetone triperoxide bomb and mimicking Tarrant's plan of setting fire to the mosques with gasoline.

He eventually dropped both ideas due to logistical and personal safety concerns.

To prepare himself for the knifing attack, the youth had watched YouTube videos, and was confident that he would be able to hit the arteries of his targets by randomly slashing at the neck and chest areas.

At the point of his arrest by the ISD, the youth had found his choice machete on Carousell which was listed for $190 but had not purchased it yet.

He had explored various other options before deciding on the machete as his attack weapon, said the ISD. PHOTO: ISD

He intended to adorn a vest he had bought online with right-wing extremist symbols. PHOTO: ISD

In further imitation of Tarrant, he had prepared two documents which he intended to disseminate prior to his attacks - one as a message to the people of France to stand against Muslims, and the second as a manifesto detailing his hatred for Islam.

The manifesto, which was unfinished when the youth was arrested, said that "violence should never be solved with peace", because peace, while "moral", is "nowhere near effective" as violence.

It borrowed heavily from Tarrant's manifesto and referred to him as a "saint" and to the Christchurch attacks as a "justifiable killing of Muslims".

"The detailed planning and preparation attests to the youth's determination to follow through with his attack plan," said the ISD.

Youth had acted alone

The 16-year-old admitted during the investigation that he could foresee only two outcomes to his plan - that he is arrested before he is able to carry out the attacks, or he executes the plan and is thereafter killed by the police.

The ISD said its investigation to date indicated that the youth had acted alone.

There was also no indication that he had tried to influence anyone with his extreme outlook or involve others in his attack plans.

His immediate family and others in his social circles were not aware of his attack plans and the depth of his hatred for Islam, said the ISD.

Asked how the youth as self-radicalised, the ISD spokesman said that while he had some friends in school, he had spent a substantial amount of time online.

It was primarily his online exposure to the extremist materials – specifically Tarrant’s live-streamed video of the attack and his manifesto, as well as the ISIS propaganda videos – that contributed to the youth’s self-radicalisation, said the spokesman.

ISD said: "This case demonstrates yet again that extreme ideas can find resonance among and radicalise Singaporeans, regardless of race or religion. It is a threat to all of us and our way of life."

The ISD urged the public to stay alert to suspicious items and individuals, and to inform the authorities by calling 999, sending an SMS to 71999, or by using the SGSecure app.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#28

Man appeals against conviction for misappropriating $81,000 from love scammer

Selina Lum
Law Correspondent

JAN 27, 2021

SINGAPORE - A victim of a love scam, who sent $1,200 to a "woman" he met on the Internet, ended up being accused of misappropriating $81,000 from the online persona, who asked him to move the cash for her.

Raj Kumar Brisa Besnath was found guilty by a district court last year on a charge of criminal breach of trust (CBT) for pocketing the money that had been entrusted to him by one "Maria Lloyd", and was sentenced to 13 months' jail.

An investigation officer testified during his trial that the police believed Maria was a "phantom" and the people behind the transactions were a group of overseas scammers.

Raj Kumar's lawyer, appealing to the High Court on Wednesday (Jan 27) against the conviction, argued that the CBT charge has not been proven because Maria is a fictitious person.

"Where there is trickery involved, there is no true entrustment," Mr Anand George argued.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Stacey Fernandez noted that "this is not the typical case of criminal breach of trust".

However, she argued that under Section 405 of the Penal Code, there was no requirement to prove the actual identity of the person who is entrusting the property.
Justice Vincent Hoong said he will consider the "interesting" arguments and give his decision at a later date.

According to Raj Kumar, he started communicating with Maria by e-mail in 2012 and he became interested in her. He said he remitted $1,200 to her after she asked for money to meet him in Singapore.

She did not come to Singapore and instead asked him for another $2,000 but he did not send her any more money, he said.

Maria later e-mailed him to say she was in Malaysia and asked him to receive a sum of money on her behalf. Raj Kumar was told to collect the cash from another person in Singapore and then take it to Malaysia.

On March 9, 2013, Raj Kumar met the intermediary, Melody Choong, at a taxi stand at the NEX shopping mall in Serangoon.

Choong, a money mule who was working for an online persona known as Jacques Chicoine, handed Raj Kumar an envelope.

Choong, who has since served a six-month jail term for money laundering offences, testified that the envelope contained $81,000 in $1,000 notes.

Choong had earlier collected the envelope from Sie Min Jeong, who received the funds in his bank account from another online persona known as Maureen Othman.

Sie made a police report on March 24, 2013, after the bank told him he needed to return the funds to the remitter as it had been wrongly credited.

But Raj Kumar claimed that the envelope contained a stack of dollar-note-sized paper. He said he thought he had been tricked and no longer trusted Maria.

However, he kept up a charade for several months, lying to Choong and Maria to give the impression that he had been caught at the checkpoint, that the money had been seized by the authorities, and he had to be bailed out and attend court.

In a judgment in April last year, a district judge found Raj Kumar's version of events to be "illogical, if not incredible" and concluded that he had concocted false stories to deflect attention away from his pocketing the money.

The district judge said that if he had really received blank pieces of paper, his first suspicion would be that Choong had taken the money, and not that he had been tricked by Maria.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#29

Conman who used scams such as purported investment with Temasek Holdings to cheat victims of over $1m gets jail

Sathish Nair Dhanabalan had used various investment scams to cheat a total of nine victims of over $1 million.
ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

10 FEB 2021

SINGAPORE - A conman who cheated his neighbour of more than $200,000 over a purported investment with Temasek Holdings was sentenced on Wednesday (Feb 10) to six years and 10 months' jail.

Sathish Nair Dhanabalan, now 36, would convince his neighbour, Mr Elanngovan Pillai Munisamy, 56, to continue investing each time the "high returns from the investment" were due.

As part of the ruse, which took place from 2014 to 2016, Mr Elanngovan even received text messages and calls from a person who claimed to be "Ho Ching".

Sathish had used various investment scams to cheat a total of nine victims of over $1 million.

In 2017, he used a similar tactic of a purported investment with another company, Barclays Bank to three cheat other victims - Ms Fadhilah Ibrahim, her husband, Mr Aniz Sirajudin Shaik Abdullah, and her mother, Madam Barakathunisa E. A. Haliyul Rahiman - of more than $400,000.

He later gave excuses when they wanted their money back.

Sathish also forged documents from organisations such as government agencies to show why his victims could not get their money back.

In August 2017, he stole four of his father's cheques and forged the older man's signature on them.

He then issued two of them to Mr Aniz, and one each to Ms Fadhilah and Madam Barakathunisa. Each cheque was for $150,000.

The cheques, however, bounced as there were insufficient funds in the bank account they were linked to.

The court heard that Sathish used similar methods to cheat his other victims.

He pleaded guilty on Wednesday to 20 charges, including eight counts of cheating involving more than $700,000 in total.

Another 41 charges linked to the remaining amount were taken into consideration during sentencing.

The court heard that Sathish has given back to his victims about 40 per cent of the amount he had taken.

His bail was set at $50,000 on Wednesday and he will surrender himself at the State Courts on Thursday to begin serving his sentence.

For each count of cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#30
British man breached SHN to meet fiancee; couple plead guilty

Nigel Skea sneaked out of his room at the Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore to meet fiancee Agatha Maghesh Eyamalai.
ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

15 FEB 2021

SINGAPORE - A Briton breached his stay-home notice (SHN) and sneaked out of his room at the Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore hotel in Marina Bay to meet his fiancee on another floor.

Nigel Skea, 52, left his room on the 14th storey without wearing a mask on three occasions on Sept 21 last year.

On the third occasion, he walked up the stairs at about 2.20am to meet Agatha Maghesh Eyamalai, a 39-year-old Singaporean, whose room was on the 27th storey.
Agatha was not serving an SHN at the time.

The couple, who got married in November last year, pleaded guilty to Covid-19-related offences on Monday (Feb 15). They will be sentenced on Feb 26.

Depending on their travel histories, people flying into Singapore are required to serve their SHN for either 14 or seven days, either at home or in government-mandated facilities.


SHNs were implemented by Singapore's multi-ministry task force on Covid-19 from Feb 18 last year and were made compulsory the following month for all travellers entering the Republic.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#31

'Strong suggestion' that foreign student who breached SHN killed himself for fear of consequences: Investigation officer

Nishad Manilka De Fonseka had unlawfully left his room in Hotel Grand Pacific to visit a friend on the same floor.
PHOTO: SCREENGRAB FROM GOOGLE MAPS

Shaffiq Alkhatib
Court Correspondent

16 FEB 2021

SINGAPORE - An incoming Singapore Management University (SMU) student from Sri Lanka who was serving his 14-day stay-home notice (SHN) at Hotel Grand Pacific repeatedly breached his quarantine by leaving his room.

On multiple occasions last August, Mr Nishad Manilka De Fonseka, 20, unlawfully left his room on the 13th storey of the Victoria Street hotel to visit a female friend who was also serving her SHN on the same floor.

He was finally caught on Aug 10 last year when a security officer found his room empty with the door left ajar.

In an inquiry into Mr De Fonseka's death on Tuesday (Feb 16), investigation officer Victoria Yee told the court that the youth was found motionless, hanging in his room two days later.

Inspector Yee added that it is "strongly suggested" that Mr De Fonseka had killed himself and that he had been worried about the implications of his breached SHN.

She also told State Coroner Kamala Ponnampalam that the student was pronounced dead at the scene and there was no reason to suspect foul play.


The court heard that the Sri Lankan arrived in Singapore on Aug 1 last year and was served with an SHN.

Closed-circuit television footage taken from the corridor outside his room was played in court on Tuesday. In it, he could be seen leaving his room on Aug 10 last year before visiting his friend next door.

The court heard that the pair had watched movies on Netflix together.

A security officer went by soon after and saw that Mr De Fonseka's room was empty, with the door left ajar. The man alerted his colleagues and the door was closed.

Mr De Fonseka left his friend's room at 11.22pm that evening and found that he could not enter his own room. This was because he had not been given an access card to enter it again.

In the video footage, he could be seen pacing up and down the hotel corridor. His friend later alerted the hotel and staff allowed Mr De Fonseka back into his own room.

SMU was alerted and its senior assistant director of student conduct, Mr Raymond Singh, sent Mr De Fonseka an e-mail to find out more about the situation.

Mr Singh testified on Tuesday and told the court that he had also asked Mr De Fonseka for a written explanation on the matter.

On Aug 12 last year, Mr De Fonseka's friend alerted the hotel after she failed to contact him.

Mr Dickson Teo, who was the hotel's duty manager at the time, arrived outside Mr De Fonseka's room at around 1pm and found that the "do not disturb" light was on.

Mr Teo testified that he knocked on the door and rang the bell but received no answer.

He alerted his colleagues and when they opened the door, they found Mr De Fonseka motionless. They alerted the authorities and he was later pronounced dead.

The state coroner will give her findings at a later date.

 

[LITTLEREDDOT]

#32
Toa Payoh hit-and-run accident: Driver charged with reckless and dangerous driving

Vaswani Richard Prakash is said to have caused grievous hurt to a 25-year-old woman at a pedestrian crossing on Lorong 1 Toa Payoh, after running the red light and failing to give way to her.
PHOTOS: SCREENGRABS FROM SG ROAD VIGILANTE - SGRV/FACEBOOK

Dominic Low

16 FEB 2021

SINGAPORE - The driver of a car involved in a hit-and-run accident last week - which left a woman injured - appeared in court on Tuesday (Feb 16).

Vaswani Richard Prakash, 34, was charged with two counts of reckless and dangerous driving.

He allegedly committed his offences in Toa Payoh just before midnight last Friday after failing to comply with instructions from Traffic Police officers to stop.

Prakash is said to have caused grievous hurt to a 25-year-old woman at a pedestrian crossing along Lorong 1 Toa Payoh, after running the red light and failing to give way to her.

He is also accused of running several other red lights in the area and speeding along Lorong 6 Toa Payoh.

Prakash allegedly lost control of his vehicle later on Lorong 1 Toa Payoh, hit the side kerb of the road and crashed into the road divider railings.

He and his two passengers - a 32-year-old woman and a 27-year-old man - then fled on foot, said the police on Monday (Feb 15).

The woman was arrested at the scene, while the male passenger was caught two days later, on Sunday (Feb 14). Both are currently under police investigations.
Prakash was arrested on Monday.

He is already facing other charges for unrelated offences.

He is accused of taking methamphetamine on June 8 last year and for biting a police officer in the forearm later that month.

Parkash was then serving his remission order after being released from prison. Under the order, he was supposed to stay out of trouble between Oct 23 last year and Aug 18 this year. But he allegedly breached it with both offences.

He is also said to have breached curfew hours specified in his remission order between May 16 and June 8 last year.

Prakash's case is expected to be heard again on Feb 22.

If found guilty of dangerous driving, first-time offenders can be jailed up to 12 months and/or fined up to $5,000. They can also be disqualified from driving.

If they had caused grievous hurt to another person while driving dangerously, they can be jailed between one and five years instead.