Ler Wee Teang Anthony v Public Prosecutor

• Jurisdiction: Singapore
• Judge: Chao Hick Tin JA
• Judgment Date: 19 April 2002
• Neutral Citation: [2002] SGCA 23
• Docket Number: Criminal Appeal No 27 of 2001
• Date: 19 April 2002
• Published date: 19 September 2003
• Year: 2002
• Plaintiff Counsel: Subash Anandan and Anand Nalachandran (Harry Elias Partnership)
• Citation: [2002] SGCA 23
• Defendant Counsel: Jaswant Singh and Lee Jwee Nguan (Deputy Public Prosecutors)
• Court: Court of Appeal (Singapore)
• Subject Matter: Admissibility of evidence,Facts in issue,Verification against objective facts and evidence of other witnesses,Appellate,Whether statements relevant,Finding of fact by trial court,Appellant's evidence in court consistent with his statements to police,Statements by appellant about getting someone to kill deceased,Criminal Law,ss 109 & 302 Penal Code (Cap 224),Abetment,Whether evidence substantiates charge beyond reasonable doubt,Whether appellate court should disturb lower court's finding,Courts and Jurisdiction,Whether court should accept evidence,Evidence,Weight of evidence,Consistency,s 14 illustration (p)Evidence Act (Cap 97, 1997 Ed),Abetment of murder,Jurisdiction

Judgment

GROUNDS OF DECISION

1. This was an appeal by the appellant, Anthony Ler Wee Teang (Anthony), against his conviction and sentence to death for abetting murder, namely having between 1 and 14 May 2001, abetted another, Z to commit the murder of one Annie Leong Wai Muen (Annie), female, aged 30, an offence punishable under s 302, read with s 109 of the Penal Code, Cap 224. Having heard counsel for the appellant, we dismissed the appeal. We now give our reasons

2. Z, the person who killed Annie, was jointly tried with Anthony. He was convicted of the offence of murder of Annie, but in view of his age (15 only) at the time the offence was committed, he was sentenced to be detained at the pleasure of the President. Z, having reconsidered his appeal, withdrew it on the day of the hearing before us.

The evidence for the prosecution

3. At the material times, Anthony and Annie were husband and wife, but were by then separated for almost a year and a half. Divorce proceedings were imminent. They had a daughter, now aged 4. Annie and her daughter were then living with Annie’s parents and her brother at #04-52 Block 923, Hougang Avenue 9, Singapore.

4. Annie was a full-time insurance agent with AIA. On 14 May 2001, she returned home from office at about 11.00 pm. Her mother and brother were at home. After her shower, she received a call in her bedroom. She then left the flat in her night dress, having informed her mother that she was going downstairs to sign some documents brought by Anthony. Annie’s daughter went down with her. As neither she nor Anthony brought a pen, she took the documents and went up in the lift, intending to sign the documents at the flat and then bringing them down. She left her daughter with Anthony. On the fourth floor, as she emerged from the lift and walked towards her mother’s flat, Z attacked her from the rear, slashing her neck and stabbing her at the chest. Thereafter he fled. Her screams were heard by her mother who did not know then that they were from her daughter. Her mother opened the door to take a look. At that point, Annie managed to struggle back to the flat and before she collapsed onto her mother, she told her in Cantonese that she had been stabbed.

5. The screams of Annie were also heard by Anthony who rushed up with the daughter to the flat. He appeared shocked when he saw Annie’s condition. Soon the ambulance arrived and Annie was brought to Tan Tock Seng hospital accompanied by Anthony. Several hours later, Annie succumbed to her injuries. The cause of death was established by the Forensic Pathologist to be "acute haemorrhage due to stab wounds of heart and lung."

6. The Police soon arrived at the scene to investigate. They could not find the weapon even after extensive search of the block and the surrounding areas. However, at the third floor lift landing they found a piece of newspaper folded in a rectangular shape. It was the front and back pages of The New Paper of 23 April 2000, with a tear at the front page and this was later established to be a page taken from Anthony’s home.

7. On 16 May 2001 a search was carried out by the Police at Anthony’s HDB maisonette at Pasir Ris. In the living room there was a stack of The New Paper on a table and on top of the pile was the 23 April 2001 issue with the following pages 5-34 and 39-44. Also on the table was a crushed sheet of the same issue consisting of pp 3-4 and 45-46. The other pages 35-38 of the same issue were found in a file containing cuttings on horse racing. So what were missing from that issue of The New Paper were the front and back pages. An analyst at the Centre for Forensic Science, Health Sciences Authority, having examined the piece of The New Paper of 23 April 2001 found on the third floor and the sheets of the same issue found in Anthony’s home, came to the conclusion that they were from a complete set of the newspaper of 48 pages as the manufacturing cutting edges of the sheets fit perfectly.

8. Because Anthony told the Police that on 13 May 2001 he was with two of his friends, Gavin Ng and Z, the latter were interviewed by the Police. At an interview on 18 May 2001, Z admitted to being the assailant but said that he killed Annie at the instigation of Anthony. Among the things the Police seized from Z’s home that day was a Japanese knife and a zip-locked bag. The following was Z’s statement written in his own handwriting:-

On the 14^th May 2001, I left my friend’s house at about 9 pm. I went home to bathe and went over to Anthony’s house to meet him and we went to Hougang Street 91 Block 923. He went to the coffeeshop then he told me to wait for his ex-wife under her block. I saw her alight from the taxi but I couldn’t do it because I don’t wish to. I called him and he said that he would meet her again under her block. He then told me to wait for her at the staircase. He told me to kill her even if his ex-wife was with their daughter. But I saw her with her daughter so I didn’t do it. Later she went up alone and I took the chance. I slashed the neck and stabbed her, then I went down the stairs and took a cab to Pasir Ris beach, there I threw the knife into the dustbin and took a slow walk home, thinking of the inhuman deed I have done to an innocent women. I went home, took a bath and went down to Macdonald’s to meet my friend.

9. Pursuant to this statement by Z, Anthony was arrested on the same day. He denied any involvement in the murder of Annie.

Statement of Z

10. Subsequently, altogether 12 statements were recorded from Z, including the cautioned statement. Statements were also recorded from the other boys. A summary of what they said in the statements is hereinafter set out. But in order to appreciate how Anthony went about plotting the murder, some details would have to be gone into.

11. Z first befriended Anthony when he was ten years old. Anthony was then staying in a block opposite to his which was Block 109, Pasir Ris Street 11. Later, Anthony moved to Block 116 which was also in the same vicinity. Z’s friends then were Gavin Ng (Gavin), Kong Ka Cheong (Ka Cheong), Vickneswaran (Vick) and Seah Tze Howe (Tze Howe). They are hereinafter referred to collectively as "the boys". Their usual hang out was at the McDonald’s restaurant (McDonald’s) at Block 444, Pasir Ris Drive 6. A few girls (Melissa, Michelle and Joanna) sometimes joined them. Anthony socialised with them there. Anthony was a jovial person and the boys enjoyed his company.

12. It was at a gathering, during the first week of May 2001, when the boys were talking of fighting and killing, that Anthony challenged them if they dared to kill people. The boys asked if there was any reward. Gavin mentioned $100,000. Anthony said he was willing to pay that amount. When asked who did Anthony want to be killed, he replied it was his wife. He said he could offer to pay if he were to sell off his maisonette, which had an estimated value of $470,000. While talking, Anthony was smiling and then said he was only joking. However, he also uttered that he wished his wife was dead.

13. On 9 May 2001 at about 12.30pm, Anthony, Z and Gavin were again at McDonald’s. Anthony again raised the matter about killing his wife. This time his tone was serious. He told them that he was a professional killer and had killed five people before. Anthony also taught them how to go about doing it – use a full-face helmet, bring a pair of gloves, preferably woollen, and a zip-lock plastic bag to hold the knife and the victim’s wallet (so as to make it look like a robbery), the route to be used, how to dispose of the knife, the wallet and clothing, and the identity card of his wife was to be sent back to her home (same as Anthony’s address as Annie had not yet changed her NRIC address) with a note saying "sorry etc". As between Z and Gavin, Anthony thought the latter was more stable and daring and thus better able to carry out the assignment but Z felt hurt and jealous and offered to do it.

14. Z then left, leaving Anthony and Gavin behind. Anthony indicated to Gavin that he preferred the job be carried out by Gavin. Anthony persistently asked Gavin to kill his wife and the latter said he would think about it. At Anthony’s suggestion, Gavin went to Anthony’s home where Anthony showed Gavin how to carry out the killing with the use of a knife, either from the front or from the rear of the victim. Gavin left Anthony’s home at about 7.00pm. He did not reply to Anthony whether he was prepared to do the killing. Later that evening, Gavin spoke over the phone with a female friend, Adeline Quek, who strongly advised Gavin against doing it.

15. Also that same evening, Z went to Gavin’s home where the latter told him that he had informed Adeline Quek of what Anthony wanted them to do and what Adeline’s advice was. Gavin, in turn, advised Z not to do it as "it was a set-up." Z replied that he had no intention of carrying out Anthony’s plot.

16. After leaving Gavin’s home, Z went over to McDonalds. Gavin called Z on the handphone to ask the latter to inform Anthony that he would not be doing the job. After all the other people had left, Z told Anthony of Gavin’s decision whereupon Anthony asked Z if he would like to carry it out. Z said anything, indicating a kind of willingness.

17. That same night Z went round his neighbourhood looking for a helmet. He found one with a jacket inside on a motorcycle and stole them. After that he went over to Anthony's home. The two talked the whole night until the morning. In their discussions, they touched on the sort of knife to buy (Anthony showed Z samples from his own kitchen), small enough to be hidden on the body yet sharp and long enough to reach the heart, the need to buy a pair of gloves, two pre-paid handphone cards from M1 to facilitate untraceable communications between the two and a cloth to wipe the knife after the job. Z said that he was ready to carry out the task that night (10 May).

18. The plan...