On Wednesday (27 Apr), Malaysian drug trafficker Nagaenthran Dharmalingam had his capital punishment carried out after more than 10 years on death row.
Source: Facebook
Despite multiple efforts, the execution was still carried out.
In the wake of his death, the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) published a list of facts regarding his case.
This was done to clear up any misinformation regarding the case, in particular, about his mental state.
In a Facebook post shared by CNB on Thursday afternoon (28 Apr), the drug enforcement agency listed four “facts” about Nagaenthran’s case.
Firstly, CNB shared the exact amount of drugs seized from Nagaenthran at Woodlands Checkpoint. CNB stated that 0.5kg of “powdery substance” was obtained, which contained “at least” 42g of “pure heroin”.
Explain the ramifications of having that amount of drugs circulating in Singapore, CNB explains that 42g of heroin is enough to feed the addiction of 510 abusers for a week.
Secondly, Nagaenthran was convicted and sentenced on 22 Nov 2010. Over the next 12 years, he has made several applications and appeals, “all of which were heard and rejected by the Courts”.
Thirdly, with regard to his intellectual disability, CNB stated that a psychiatrist called by Nagaenthran’s defence agreed that the drug trafficker was not intellectually disabled.
Lastly, CNB said Nagaenthran’s lawyer had “refused to consent” to have his client’s “latest medical and psychiatric reports placed before the Court”.
Despite this, his lawyer asserted that his client possessed the “mental age of a person below 18 years of age”.
A press release published on CNB’s website elaborated on the facts and includes additional details with regard to Nagaenthran’s mental state.
At the time of arrest, CNB stated that Nagaenthran acted in a way that showed his capability for “manipulation and evasion”.
According to CNB, when officers stopped him at Woodlands Checkpoint, he attempted to stop a search on his vehicle by stating that he was “working in security”.
It was likely that he had used this line of reasoning to appeal to the “social perception of the trustworthiness of security officers”.
Additionally, the Court noted that he had been “continuously altering his account of his educational qualifications… to reflect lower educational qualifications each time he was interviewed”.
CNB states that his actions showed the “working of a criminal mind”, one that weighed “the risks and countervailing benefits associated with the criminal conduct in question”. Despite all that, Nagaenthran still undertook the risk.
Despite the assertion from his counsel that Nagaenthran possessed the mental age of a person below 18 years of age, CNB stated that his lawyer, Mr M Ravi, did not have medical expertise to comment on this matter.
Although it would be relevant in proceedings, the lawyer also refused to consent to have his client’s latest medical and psychiatric reports placed before the Court.
Additionally, the Courts have gone on record to share that his lawyer has only met Nagaenthran once in the past three years.
This took place on 2 Nov 2021 and lasted for 26 minutes.
Our emotions and sentiments can sometimes cloud our judgment.
Although there were vocal protests against his sentencing, we have to take into account the facts presented.
Nonetheless, we hope the facts will result in more informed discourse about the case and drug laws in Singapore as a whole.
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Featured image adapted from @ajplus on Twitter.
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