CNB Concluded Investigation of Arrest of Drug Suspect Who Killed Himself; Traces of Drugs Found in Body

By
Shawn Ambrose
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Around a month ago, when a grieving mother claimed that officers from the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) mistreated her 17-year-old son and drove him to suicide, people certainly took notice.

As we’ve seen with the claims Raeesah Khan made in Parliament, the authorities take allegations of misconduct on the part of their public officers very seriously.

The bereaved mother, Cecilia Ow, uploaded a social media post on 16 Sep saying that her son Justin had died after falling from height months after being arrested for a drug-related offence on 3 Feb.

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Allegations of Mistreatment 

In her post, Ms Ow made several allegations about CNB officers mistreating Justin while in custody, and criticised the “prosecutorial system” as well.

Some of the allegations are:

  • that on 3 Feb, before his arrest, six to nine CNB officers chased Justin down but found nothing in his room
  • that Justin was interrogated in an “abrasive” manner and held in custody in “less than ideal” condition
  • that he was not allowed to contact his family while in custody
  • that he was held in a “frigid cell” and prohibited from doing push-ups to warm himself up

Ms Ow said Justin had become a different person after his encounter with CNB officers, as he stopped talking to his family members and rarely came out of his room.

“His psychologist told me that he was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder,” she wrote.

Ms Ow’s post, as well as a public letter to Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam, prompted the authorities to look into the matter.

Now, they’ve finally concluded their investigations.

CNB: Internal Investigations Showed No Mistreatment

In a statement yesterday, CNB said that its internal investigations showed “no mistreatment” when Justin was in custody.

The bureau also revealed the events that led up to the teen’s arrest.

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CNB said that in January this year, it began investigating an individual who was suspected of trafficking LSD stamps and was openly advertising them on a messaging app.

Their investigations led to the arrest of Justin on 3 Feb, as well as a follow-up operation the next day where they seized 131 LSD stamps. Justin admitted they were meant for sale, and that he too had abused LSD stamps.

Justin was compliant throughout his arrest, CNB added. As for the claim that “six to nine” officers were involved, CNB confirmed that nine officers were deployed for the operation, but explained that such operations often involve several suspects, meaning more arrests could need to be made.

They only entered the unit after they were given permission by Ms Ow, the bureau said. The search in the house lasted 20 minutes.

After he was escorted to the CNB Enforcement Office, CNB said Justin was allowed to talk to his mother, as suspects are allowed to speak to family members, but not about their case.

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He was later conveyed to the Central Police Divisional Headquarters, where he underwent a medical examination by a lock-up doctor. The 17-year-old was concluded to be well. What’s more, when he was released from lock-up, the teen signed to acknowledge that he had no complaints.

“Justin was not mistreated in any way,” it said.

CCTV footage also showed that Justin was given a blanket in his cell, as well as meals and drinks. There were no instances of him trying to do push-ups in his cell, CNB said.

Justin was charged in court on 24 Jun and released on bail. Ms Ow alleged that his case had been postponed, which made Justin more stressed, but CNB said it was Justin’s defence counsel (his lawyer) that requested his case be adjourned four times.

The bureau revealed that the teen’s toxicology tests conducted after his death found traces of LSD and nitrazepam in his urine and blood.

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The cause of death was found to be multiple injuries consistent with a fall from height.

Offered Psychological Support to Mother

CNB said that it has been reaching out to Ms Ow since 20 Sep, four days after Justin’s death, and offered psychological support, which she accepted on 21 Sep.

However, after a single session on 22 Sep, a family member informed the bureau that she did not wish to take up further psychological support from CNB.

Justin was only 17 at the time of his death. Mr Shangmuam earlier described the case as a “very sad heartbreaking situation”.

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Shawn Ambrose
Email: [email protected]