PP v Abdul Haleem & Muhammad Ridzuan: Trafficking in Diamorphine under Misuse of Drugs Act

In Public Prosecutor v Abdul Haleem bin Abdul Karim and another, the High Court of Singapore, presided over by Tay Yong Kwang J, convicted Abdul Haleem and Muhammad Ridzuan on two charges of trafficking in diamorphine under the Misuse of Drugs Act. Both accused pleaded guilty but the pleas were rejected due to the capital punishment involved in the first charge. The court found both accused guilty. Abdul Haleem was sentenced to life imprisonment and caning, while Muhammad Ridzuan received the mandatory death sentence for the first charge. The charges involved possessing 72.50 grams and 14.99 grams of diamorphine for trafficking purposes.

1. Case Overview

1.1 Court

High Court

1.2 Outcome

Abdul Haleem was sentenced to life imprisonment and caning. Muhammad Ridzuan was sentenced to death.

1.3 Case Type

Criminal

1.4 Judgment Type

Grounds of Decision

1.5 Jurisdiction

Singapore

1.6 Description

Abdul Haleem and Muhammad Ridzuan were convicted of trafficking diamorphine. Ridzuan received the death sentence, while Haleem was sentenced to life imprisonment.

1.7 Decision Date

2. Parties and Outcomes

Party NameRoleTypeOutcomeOutcome TypeCounsels
Public ProsecutorProsecutionGovernment AgencyPartialPartial
Shahla Iqbal of Attorney-General’s Chambers
Ruth Wong of Attorney-General’s Chambers
Muhammad Ridzuan bin Md AliDefendantIndividualLostLost
Abdul Haleem bin Abdul KarimDefendantIndividualPartialPartial

3. Judges

Judge NameTitleDelivered Judgment
Tay Yong KwangJudgeYes

4. Counsels

Counsel NameOrganization
Shahla IqbalAttorney-General’s Chambers
Ruth WongAttorney-General’s Chambers
Mohd Muzammil Bin MohdMuzammil & Co
Lam Wai SingLam W S & Co
Ramesh TiwaryRamesh Tiwary
K PrasadK Prasad & Co

4. Facts

  1. Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan agreed to purchase heroin to repack and sell.
  2. Ridzuan was contacted by Afad to purchase one 'ball' of heroin for $7,000.
  3. Abdul Haleem collected one bundle of heroin from a jockey on 5 May 2010.
  4. Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan repacked the heroin into 20 small plastic sachets.
  5. On 6 May 2010, Gemuk told Ridzuan that he would be passing him additional bundles of heroin.
  6. Abdul Haleem collected eight bundles of heroin from the jockey on 6 May 2010.
  7. CNB officers found Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan in a flat with heroin and drug paraphernalia.

5. Formal Citations

  1. Public Prosecutor v Abdul Haleem bin Abdul Karim and another, Criminal Case No 4 of 2013, [2013] SGHC 110

6. Timeline

DateEvent
Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan committed the offence of trafficking in diamorphine.
Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan were arrested.
Cautioned statements recorded from Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan.
Long statement recorded from Ridzuan.
Long statements recorded from Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan.
Long statements recorded from Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan.
Long statement recorded from Abdul Haleem.
Cautioned statements recorded from Abdul Haleem and Ridzuan.
Muhammad Faizal bin Baharin and Tan Siew Fong gave evidence.
Stanley Seah Choon Keng and Marriana gave evidence.
Abdul Haleem Bin Abdul Karim gave evidence.
Muhammad Ridzuan Bin Md Ali gave evidence.
Judgment issued.

7. Legal Issues

  1. Trafficking in Controlled Drugs
    • Outcome: The court found both accused guilty of trafficking in diamorphine.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Possession of controlled drug
      • Knowledge of the nature of the drug
      • Possession for the purpose of trafficking
    • Related Cases:
      • [2004] 1 SLR(R) 550
  2. Presumption of Knowledge
    • Outcome: The court found that Ridzuan failed to rebut the presumption of knowledge.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Rebutting the presumption of knowledge of the nature of the drug
    • Related Cases:
      • [2011] 4 SLR 1156
  3. Applicability of s 33B of the Misuse of Drugs Act
    • Outcome: The court found that Abdul Haleem satisfied the requirements of s 33B(2)(a) and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Ridzuan also satisfied the requirements of s 33B(2)(a) but did not receive a certificate from the Public Prosecutor under s 33B(2)(b) and was sentenced to death.
    • Category: Substantive
    • Sub-Issues:
      • Involvement restricted to transporting, sending or delivering a controlled drug
      • Substantive assistance to the Central Narcotics Bureau

8. Remedies Sought

  1. Imprisonment
  2. Caning
  3. Death Penalty

9. Cause of Actions

  • Trafficking in Diamorphine

10. Practice Areas

  • Criminal Litigation

11. Industries

  • No industries specified

12. Cited Cases

Case NameCourtAffirmedCitationJurisdictionSignificance
Raman Selvam s/o Renganathan v PPHigh CourtYes[2004] 1 SLR(R) 550SingaporeCited for the elements required for a charge of trafficking under s 5(1) of the Misuse of Drugs Act.
Chai Chien Wei Kelvin v PPCourt of AppealYes[1998] 3 SLR(R) 619SingaporeCited for the principle that an accomplice's evidence should be treated with caution, depending on the circumstances of the case.
Nagaenthran a/l K Dharmalingam v PPHigh CourtYes[2011] 4 SLR 1156SingaporeCited for the approach to be followed where the accused sought to rebut the presumption of knowledge under s 18(2) of the Misuse of Drugs Act.
Dinesh Pillai a/l K Raja Retnam v PPHigh CourtYes[2012] 2 SLR 903SingaporeCited in relation to the presumption of knowledge under s 18(2) of the Misuse of Drugs Act.
Osman bin Din v PPCourt of AppealYes[1995] 1 SLR(R) 419SingaporeCited for the literal interpretation of s 18(3) of the Misuse of Drugs Act.

13. Applicable Rules

Rule Name
No applicable rules

14. Applicable Statutes

Statute NameJurisdiction
Misuse of Drugs Act (Cap 185, 2008 Rev Ed) s 5(1)(a)Singapore
Penal Code (Cap 224, 2008 Rev Ed) s 34Singapore
Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 1985 Rev Ed) s 170(1)Singapore
Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 1985 Rev Ed) s 176Singapore
Criminal Procedure Code s 122(6)Singapore
Misuse of Drugs Act s 2Singapore
Misuse of Drugs Act s 18(1)Singapore
Misuse of Drugs Act s 18(4)Singapore
Misuse of Drugs Act s 18(2)Singapore
Evidence Act (Cap 97, 1997 Rev Ed) s 116Singapore
Misuse of Drugs Act s 33BSingapore

15. Key Terms and Keywords

15.1 Key Terms

  • Diamorphine
  • Trafficking
  • Controlled drug
  • Jockey
  • Bundles
  • Sachets
  • MDA
  • Presumption of knowledge
  • Courier

15.2 Keywords

  • Drug trafficking
  • Diamorphine
  • Misuse of Drugs Act
  • Death penalty
  • Life imprisonment
  • Singapore
  • Criminal law

17. Areas of Law

Area NameRelevance Score
Misuse of Drugs Act95
Criminal Law70
Penal Code60
Criminal Procedure60
Criminal conspiracy50
Admissibility of evidence40
Criminal Revision30
Civil Procedure30
Evidence30

16. Subjects

  • Criminal Law
  • Drug Trafficking