In 2017, 46-year-old Tangaraju s/o Suppiah was convicted of abetting an attempt at trafficking drugs to Singapore. He was given the death penalty due to the quantity of cannabis involved.
Six years after the conviction, the Singaporean’s execution date has reportedly been scheduled for next Wednesday (26 Apr).
A local activist took to Facebook to share Mr Tangaraju’s story and appeal for support against his death penalty.
Mr Tangaraju’s first hearing found him guilty of conspiring with his childhood friend, ‘Suresh’, and a man known as ‘Mogan’ to traffic 1017.9g of cannabis to Singapore.
The judge noted that Mogan was given two phone numbers which he frequently contact prior to his arrest.
Police investigations later found that Mr Tangaraju owned the two numbers.
Mr Tangaraju, however, claimed that he had “nothing to do” with the first number. He also said he lost his mobile phone bearing the second number.
Nevertheless, the court found him guilty of the charges.
The judge found that the quantity of drugs involved far exceeded the amount consumed by a typical addict on a daily basis. The court thus concluded that the drugs were for the purpose of trafficking and not personal consumption.
Mr Tangaraju was eventually given the death penalty as the quantity of drugs involved was twice the amount which would’ve ‘triggered’ the death penalty.
Source: Manifold Times
Last December, Mr Tangaraju applied for his case to be reviewed on account of a change in the law.
Unfortunately, the Court of Appeal dismissed his application, citing a failure to provide any “legitimate basis” for the court to review the case.
On Wednesday (19 Apr), local activist Kokila Annamalai shared on Facebook that Mr Tangaraju is scheduled to be executed next Wednesday (26 Apr).
His family apparently rushed down to visit Mr Tangaraju in prison once they were informed of the date.
Mr Tangaraju’s sister, Leela, is “at a complete loss as to what to do”.
The activist also conveyed Leela’s wishes for the public to help her family protest against her brother’s execution.
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Featured image adapted from Manifold Times and Facebook.
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