Two Singaporean men have been charged for allegedly helping Lim Tean leave Singapore illegally, said the Singapore Police Force (SPF) in a press release sent to MS News.
The lawyer and opposition politician, who was supposed to start his jail term on 3 Aug, reportedly entered Johor Bahru by land the next day, according to Shin Min Daily News.
Source: Lim Tean on Facebook
SPF said the two men were believed to have conspired to make arrangements for Lim to illegally depart Singapore for Malaysia.
They were identified in court documents as Mohammad Adam bin Abd Karim, 44, and Sulaiman bin Muhammad Firdaus, 37.
However, Lim was arrested by the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP) in JB on Thursday (6 Aug).
SPF is working closely with the RMP to secure his return to Singapore, it added.
According to information obtained by Shin Min, Lim entered Malaysia by land, somehow managing to cross the border undetected.
He then checked in to a rental apartment in JB on Tuesday (4 Aug).
The Chinese daily earlier reported that he did not have much luggage and left his room only twice a day to pick up food.
One of the men, reportedly Mohammad Adam, is believed to have helped secure his accommodation, with reporters told that a man with the same name had collected the keys to the apartment.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
However, when the RMP arrived at the apartment to arrest him on Thursday, Lim refused to open the door, claiming he did not have a passport, according to Shin Min.
After a two-hour standoff, the police contacted the apartment management to open the door.
When asked to present his passport, Lim was unable to do so.
He was then handcuffed and escorted into a police car.
Source: Lim Tean on Facebook
On Saturday (8 Aug), Mohammad Adam and Sulaiman were charged in court with one count of engaging in a conspiracy to do an act that has a tendency to defeat the course of justice, knowing that the act is likely to defeat the course of justice.
The offence, which is under Section 204A(a) read with Section 109 of the Penal Code, carries jail term of up to seven years and/or a fine.
They will remain in remand till 14 Aug, when their case is heard in court again.
SPF said the authorities take “a firm stance” against those who assist others to evade justice and will prosecute such offenders “to the fullest extent under the law”.
Lim, chief of the opposition party People’s Voice, had practised as a lawyer for a period of more than two months while not having a valid practising certificate.
He was sentenced to a jail term of three months and one week, and was supposed to start serving his sentence on 3 Aug after successfully applying for a deferment.
But on that day, he failed to surrender at the State Courts and became uncontactable, his lawyer said.
An arrest warrant was subsequently issued against him.
Also read: Lim Tean arrested in JB days after failing to surrender for jail sentence in S’pore
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Featured image by MS News.