Public Prosecutor v Roslan Bin Abdul Rani

• Jurisdiction: Singapore
• Judge: Emily Wilfred
• Judgment Date: 06 March 2004
• Neutral Citation: [2004] SGDC 61
• Court: District Court (Singapore)
• Year: 2004
• Published date: 06 April 2004
• Plaintiff Counsel: Ms Brenda Tan (Deputy Public Prosecutor)
• Defendant Counsel: Mr B Ganesh (Ganesh and Partners)
• Citation: [2004] SGDC 61

6 March 2004

District Judge Emily K Wilfred

1 The accused claimed trial to one charge of trafficking under Section 5(1)(a) and punishable under Section 33 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, Capter 185. At the end of the trial, he was found guilty of the offence and sentenced to 6 years imprisonment and 6 strokes of the cane. He has appealed against his conviction and sentence.

2 The accused was tried and convicted on the following charge:

“You

Roslan Bin Abdul Rani, M/36 Yrs

NRIC S1741070I

are charge that you, on or about the 27^th day of February 2003 at about 8.25 p.m., at Petir LRT station, Singapore, did traffic in a controlled drug specified in Class “A” of the First Schedule to the Misuse of Drugs Act Cap 185, to wit, by selling one (1) packet of powdery substance which was analysed and found to contain 0.29 gram of diamorphine at $600/- to Razali Bin Yusoff, M/37 yrs, S1704542C, without any authorisation under the said Act or the Regulations made thereunder and you have committed an offence under Section 5(1)(a) and punishable under Section 33 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, Cap 185.”

Undisputed Facts

2. On 27^th February 2003, at about 7.15 p.m, a Central Narcotics Bureau (“CNB”) team was briefed on a case involving two Malay males believed to be drug traffickers. One of them by the name of “Baba” (PW2) was going to sell one sachet of heroin for $650 to a Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) undercover officer. PW2 was said to have obtained the drugs from another male Malay by the name of “Lan” (accused”). PW2 was described as tall and tough, sporting a pair of bermudas and a T-shirt. The transaction was to take place at the Petir LRT Station.

4 The CNB operation to ambush and capture the two suspects was divided into two teams. One team consisted of two undercover CNB officers, Corporal Karathigayan (PW5) and Corporal Iskandar (PW6), who were to travel to the Petir LRT in a taxi whilst other team travelled in a CNB staff car, which was to follow the taxi. The team in the CNB staff car consisted of SSgt Mohd Affendi, Sgt Eugene Eng, W/Cpl Michelle Tan, Sgt Kannan and SSgt Henry Chong. Two other team members namely SSgt Ashari Bin Hassan and Sgt Daniel Quek remained behind. The taxi arrived at Petir LRT station between 7.45 p.m. to 8 p.m. PW5 and PW6 met up with PW2 who boarded their taxi and he directed the taxi to the car park situated behind Block 108, Gangsa Road. Both vehicles were parked facing each other in the car park. When the taxi was parked, PW2 told the undercover officers that he had to leave to collect the drugs and asked for payment. PW5 informed him that payment would be effected upon delivery of the drugs. PW2 alighted from the taxi and walked towards Petir LRT station. Upon seeing PW2 alight from the taxi, Sgt Eugene Eng (PW7) and Cpl Michelle Tan (PW8) alighted from the CNB staff car to tail PW2.

5 When PW2 was at Petir LRT station, PW7 and 8 positioned themselves at the void deck of Block 108 to observe PW2. They saw PW2 pacing up and down near the entrance of the LRT station for about 15 to 20 minutes as if he was waiting for someone. Subsequently PW7 saw PW2 going up to the platform. PW7 went across to Block 105 to get a better view of the platform whilst PW8 remained behind. He saw PW2 pacing up and down and then lost sight of him. After about a minute, he spotted the accused again at the ground level having a conversation with the accused inside the station. Then they left together and he lost sight of them again. PW8 confirmed PW7’s account of PW2’s movement except that she lost sight of him when he went up the platform. Whilst keeping surveillance at the void of Block 108, she was told by PW7 by way of telephone communication that PW2 had met up with another male Malay. Subsequently she saw PW2 and the accused talking near the exit of the station for about 1to 2 minutes. They went out of the station together and parted company. Both the accused and PW2 confirmed that they met at the station and had a short conversation. They also confirmed that they did not meet anyone else at the station. PW8 saw PW2 walk back to where the taxi was parked. She also observed the accused who appeared to be waiting. He was pacing up and down the LRT station “quite near the roadside”(page 76 of Notes of Evidence[“NE”]). The accused confirmed this. When PW2 handed the drugs to the undercover officers through the taxi window, the party in the CNB staff car moved in to arrest PW2. There was a commotion. PW8 saw the accused crossing the road in a hurried manner. She followed him and then he started running. She saw PW7 chasing the accused and she gave chase as well. Finally PW7 caught up with the accused in an open space somewhere around Block 151. He was handcuffed and brought back to the void deck of Block 108. PW2 identified the accused as the person who supplied him the drugs. He also identified the accused as “Lan”. The homes of PW2 and Lan were searched but nothing incriminating was found.

6 Accused and PW2 were taken to the Police Cantonment Complex where they were subject to urine tests. PW2’s urine samples were tested positive for morphine whilst the accused urine test results were analysed as inconsistent because of the presence of both codeine and morphine were detected. The sachet of drugs, which PW2 received from the accused and handed over to the CNB undercover officers, was sent to HSA for analysis and HSA certified that the sachet contained 0.29 gram of diamorphine (P5).

7 On the day the accused was arrested, there were 13 telephone conversations between the accused and PW2; 9 calls from PW2 and 4 calls from the accused.

8 PW2 was charged in court for trafficking 0.29 gram of diamorphine to the CNB undercover officers under Section 5(1)(a) punishable under section 33 as well as for drug consumption under section 8(b)(ii) punishable under section 33A(1) of the Act. He pleaded guilty to both offences in the Subordinate Court No. 4 on 16 May 2003 and was sentenced to 6 years and 6 strokes of the cane for the trafficking offence and 6 years and 3 strokes for the consumption offence. Both sentences were to run concurrently and backdated to 28 Feb 2003.

Prosecution’s Case.

9 It was the Prosecution’s case that the accused sold drugs to PW2 for $600 who then sold the drugs to the CNB undercover officers for $650. PW2 (Razali Bin Yusoff also known as Baba) gave evidence implicating the accused. He testified that he had known the accused for more than 20 years. They were childhood friends.

10 On 27^th Feb 2003, PW2’s friend by the name of “Talib” called PW2 on his hand phone to ask whether he could obtain heroin. With the help of PW2’s hand phone records from Singtel in exhibit “P2”, PW2 recalled that Talib made the call at 9.49 a.m. PW2 told Talib that he would look into the matter. He then called the accused on his hand phone at 10.36.41 to enquire whether the accused was able to procure the drugs for his friend. The accused replied that he would try to obtain the drugs. PW2 informed Talib accordingly.

11 At about 18:21:10, PW2 called the accused who informed that he may be able to get the stuff and that he was going to work. At 19:11:55, the accused called PW2 to say that he was able to procure the drugs which would cost $600 for 1 sachet of heroin. They arranged to meet at Petir LRT station as PW2 was then living at Block 108 Gangsa Road, which was near Petir LRT station. PW2 then called Talib to inform that he had managed to obtain 1 sachet of heroin at $650. The $50 difference was for him to buy cigarettes. He also arranged to meet Talib at Petir LRT station. According to PW2, they agreed to meet at 7p.m. Subsequently Talib called PW2 to inform that he was having some personal problems and that his friend would meet PW2 instead. After some persuasion, PW2 agreed to transact the deal with Talib’s friend. At about 7 p.m., PW2 left his home. He waited for some time before Talib’s friend finally turned up. Meanwhile he called the accused to ascertain where he was. The accused told him that there was no need for him to know his whereabouts and instructed PW2 to call him when Talib arrived.

12 Unknown to PW2 and the accused, the scheduled transaction was in fact a CNB undercover operation. The taxi conveying the 2 undercover CNB officers arrived at Petir LRT station between 7.45 p.m. to 8 p.m. PW5 and PW6 met up with PW2 who fitted the description of Baba. He boarded the taxi and directed the driver to drive them to a car park situated behind Block 108, Gangsa Road. The taxi was parked in the spot marked “T” in exhibit P4. The CNB staff car was parked facing the taxi. PW2 told the CNB undercover officers that he had to collect the drugs from somewhere nearby and asked for payment. The CNB undercover officers indicated that they would only make payment upon delivery of the drugs.

13 PW2 alighted from the taxi and headed for the Petir LRT station. On his way, he called the accused to inform him that Talib’s friends had arrived and he required the drugs. The accused replied that he was on his way and that he was coming by Light Rapid Transit (LRT). PW7 and PW8 alighted from the CNB staff car when they saw PW2 getting out of the taxi and followed him. When PW2 was at Petir LRT station, PW7 and 8 positioned themselves at the void deck of Block 108 to observe him. They saw him pacing up and down near the entrance of the LRT station for about 15 to 20 minutes as if he was waiting for someone. Meanwhile the CNB staff car pulled up at the spot marked “CNB” in exhibit P4 where the ambush party kept surveillance over the taxi. When PW7 saw PW2 going up to the platform of Petir LRT station, he asked PW8 to remain at the void deck whist he crossed the road over to Block 150, which was on a slope to observe what PW2 was doing on the platform. For about 1 minute, PW7 lost sight of PW2 on the train station platform. Shortly, he saw PW2 on the ground level having a conversation with the accused. They moved out...