Malaysian to be hanged in Singapore after court dismisses appeal
A Singapore court on Wednesday dismissed a last-ditch appeal by a convicted Malaysian drug trafficker, clearing the way for him to be hanged within hours.
Kalwant Singh, 32, is due to be put to death early Thursday, two months after the execution of a mentally disabled man in Singapore sparked international outrage.
Kalwant, who was convicted in 2016 of trafficking heroin into the city-state, had lodged a last-gasp attempt with the Court of Appeal to delay his sentence.
His lawyer sought a review of the case, arguing on Wednesday that his client had provided information that helped authorities arrest a key suspected drug trafficker.
While the death penalty is mandatory in Singapore for trafficking certain volumes of drugs, a judge can commute the sentence to life in prison if the offender acted only as a courier and cooperated with authorities.
One of the co-accused in Kalwant's case had his sentence commuted after he cooperated substantively with investigators.
But a three-judge panel dismissed Kalwant's appeal, citing an affidavit from Singapore's Central Narcotics Bureau stating its officers did not use any information he provided to arrest a suspect.
"We dismiss the application for the stay," Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said during a hearing.
In April, the execution in Singapore of a mentally disabled Malaysian drug trafficker, Nagaenthran K. Dharmalingam, triggered widespread anger.
Critics including the United Nations and European Union said that hanging someone with an intellectual disability breached international law.
Kalwant Singh, 32, is due to be put to death early Thursday, two months after the execution of a mentally disabled man in Singapore sparked international outrage.
Kalwant, who was convicted in 2016 of trafficking heroin into the city-state, had lodged a last-gasp attempt with the Court of Appeal to delay his sentence.
His lawyer sought a review of the case, arguing on Wednesday that his client had provided information that helped authorities arrest a key suspected drug trafficker.
While the death penalty is mandatory in Singapore for trafficking certain volumes of drugs, a judge can commute the sentence to life in prison if the offender acted only as a courier and cooperated with authorities.
One of the co-accused in Kalwant's case had his sentence commuted after he cooperated substantively with investigators.
But a three-judge panel dismissed Kalwant's appeal, citing an affidavit from Singapore's Central Narcotics Bureau stating its officers did not use any information he provided to arrest a suspect.
"We dismiss the application for the stay," Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon said during a hearing.
In April, the execution in Singapore of a mentally disabled Malaysian drug trafficker, Nagaenthran K. Dharmalingam, triggered widespread anger.
Critics including the United Nations and European Union said that hanging someone with an intellectual disability breached international law.
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