Singapore sentences man to death via Zoom call

A Singaporean Judge has sentenced a man to death for drug trafficking via Zoom video call, making it the third known case of capital punishment remotely delivered.

A spokesperson for the country’s Supreme Court stated that the hearing was done remotely to minimize covid-19 spread.

“For the safety of all involved in the proceedings, the hearing for Public Prosecutor v Punithan A/L Genasan was conducted by video-conferencing,” the official stated.

Punithan Genasan, a 37-year-old Malaysian, was sentenced to death by hanging on Friday for spear-heading a 2011 heroin deal, court documents showed.

Human Rights groups have criticized the development as well as Singapore’s zero tolerance for foreign drug criminals.

“Singapore’s use of the death penalty is inherently cruel and inhumane, and the use of remote technology like Zoom to sentence a man to death makes it even more so,” Human Rights Watch’s deputy director for Asia, Phil Robertson said.

Read also: COVID-19: Robots arrive to screen patients in Rwanda, as Kenya sends 182 foreigners back to Tanzania

Meanwhile, Genasan’s lawyer, Peter Fernando, said he did not object to Friday’s judgment being delivered on Zoom since the judge was audible as well as the verdict.

He stated, however, that his client is considering an appeal against the verdict.

Singapore has recorded 28,794 Covid-19 cases and 22 deaths so far, according to the Johns Hopkins University tally.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now