PP v Iswan bin Ali: Trafficking of Diamorphine under Misuse of Drugs Act
In Public Prosecutor v Iswan bin Ali, the High Court of Singapore found Iswan bin Ali guilty of trafficking diamorphine under the Misuse of Drugs Act. Iswan was charged with possessing not less than 61.19 grams of diamorphine for the purpose of trafficking. The court altered the charge to reflect the finding that Iswan was guilty of trafficking 51.41g of diamorphine. The court found that the prosecution had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Iswan possessed 51.41g of diamorphine for the purpose of trafficking, while raising sufficient doubt as to whether the remaining amount was for the purpose of trafficking.
1. Case Overview
1.1 Court
General Division of the High Court1.2 Outcome
Guilty
1.3 Case Type
Criminal
1.4 Judgment Type
Judgment
1.5 Jurisdiction
Singapore
1.6 Description
Iswan bin Ali was charged with possessing diamorphine for trafficking. The court found him guilty of trafficking 51.41g of diamorphine.
1.7 Decision Date
2. Parties and Outcomes
| Party Name | Role | Type | Outcome | Outcome Type | Counsels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Public Prosecutor | Prosecution | Government Agency | Guilty | Won | Hon Yi, Yeo Zhen Xiong, Ariel Tan Hui Ru |
| Iswan bin Ali | Defendant | Individual | Guilty | Lost | Elengovan s/o V Krishnan, Wong Hong Weng Stephen |
3. Judges
| Judge Name | Title | Delivered Judgment |
|---|---|---|
| Dedar Singh Gill | Judge of the High Court | Yes |
4. Counsels
| Counsel Name | Organization |
|---|---|
| Hon Yi | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Yeo Zhen Xiong | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Ariel Tan Hui Ru | Attorney-General’s Chambers |
| Elengovan s/o V Krishnan | Elengovan Chambers |
| Wong Hong Weng Stephen | Matthew Chiong Partnership |
4. Facts
- CNB officers raided Iswan’s home and arrested him.
- Iswan informed Sgt 3 Syazwan that there were drugs kept in his car.
- CNB officers searched Iswan's car and seized six packets containing granular / powdery substance.
- CNB officers searched Iswan's registered address and seized one packet of crystalline substance.
- The seized drug exhibits were weighed and analysed by the HSA.
- Iswan admitted that the seized drug exhibits were placed in the car by him.
- Iswan stated that he knew that the seized drug exhibits contained ‘heroin’ or ‘panas’, which are the street names for diamorphine.
5. Formal Citations
- Public Prosecutor v Iswan bin Ali, Criminal Case No 4 of 2024, [2024] SGHC 239
6. Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| CNB officers raided Iswan’s home and arrested him | |
| Iswan informed Sgt 3 Syazwan that there were drugs kept in his car | |
| CNB officers searched Iswan's car and seized six packets containing granular / powdery substance | |
| CNB officers searched Iswan's registered address and seized one packet of crystalline substance | |
| IO Asilah and SI Cindy Ow commenced the weighing of the Seized Drug Exhibits | |
| IO Asilah handed over the case exhibits to SI Cindy Ow | |
| Sgt 3 Sufyan collected the Seized Drug Exhibits and Exhibit J1A1 and brought them to Wendy Lim from the Health Sciences Authority for analysis | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| Dr Koh conducted a psychiatric assessment on Iswan | |
| Wendy Lim issued nine certificates under s 16 of the MDA, in respect of the Seized Drug Exhibits | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| s 22 CPC statement recorded from Iswan | |
| Trial began | |
| Judgment reserved | |
| Judgment issued |
7. Legal Issues
- Trafficking of Controlled Drugs
- Outcome: The court found the accused guilty of trafficking 51.41g of diamorphine.
- Category: Substantive
- Sub-Issues:
- Possession of a controlled drug
- Knowledge of the nature of the drug
- Possession of the drug for the purpose of trafficking
- Chain of Custody
- Outcome: The court found that the prosecution had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that the drug exhibits analysed by the HSA were the Seized Drug Exhibits.
- Category: Procedural
- Presumption of Trafficking
- Outcome: The court found that the presumption of trafficking applied to the accused as he was found in possession of more than 2g of diamorphine.
- Category: Substantive
- Bailee Defence
- Outcome: The court found that the bailee defense did not apply as the accused was involved in the sale of the drugs.
- Category: Substantive
- Defence of Consumption
- Outcome: The court found that there was sufficient doubt as to whether Exhibits C1A and C1B were in his possession for the purpose of trafficking.
- Category: Substantive
8. Remedies Sought
- Conviction
- Imprisonment
9. Cause of Actions
- Trafficking in a controlled drug
10. Practice Areas
- Criminal Law
- Drug Trafficking
11. Industries
- No industries specified
12. Cited Cases
| Case Name | Court | Affirmed | Citation | Jurisdiction | Significance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muhammad Ridzuan bin Md Ali v Public Prosecutor and other matters | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2014] 3 SLR 721 | Singapore | Summarized the elements of a charge under s 5(1)(a) of the MDA |
| Mohamed Affandi bin Rosli v Public Prosecutor and another appeal | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2019] 1 SLR 440 | Singapore | The Prosecution must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the drug exhibits analysed by the HSA are the very ones that were initially seized by the CNB officers from the accused |
| Public Prosecutor v Chen Mingjian | Unknown | Yes | [2009] 4 SLR(R) 946 | Singapore | There cannot be a single moment that is unaccounted for if this would give rise to a reasonable doubt as to the identity of the exhibits |
| Lai Kam Loy and others v Public Prosecutor | Court of Appeal | Yes | [1993] 3 SLR(R) 143 | Singapore | The Prosecution only needs to laboriously call every single witness to establish the chain of possession of the seized drugs where a doubt as to the identity of an exhibit has arisen |
| Nguyen Tuong Van v Public Prosecutor | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2005] 1 SLR(R) 103 | Singapore | What is crucially important is to ensure that there has been no mixing of the drug exhibits or the tampering of the contents |
| Ramesh a/l Perumal v Public Prosecutor and another appeal | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2019] 1 SLR 1003 | Singapore | An accused who took custody of the drugs but intended to and in fact returned the drugs to the person who initially entrusted him with the drugs would not be found to come within the definition of “trafficking” |
| Roshdi bin Abdullah Altway v Public Prosecutor and another matter | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2022] 1 SLR 535 | Singapore | Where the ‘bailee’ in a ‘bailment’ arrangement knew or intended that the ‘bailment’ would be part of the process of supply and distribution of drugs within society, he would fall within the definition of “trafficking” |
| Muhammad bin Abdullah v Public Prosecutor and another appeal | Court of Appeal | Yes | [2017] 1 SLR 427 | Singapore | Several relevant factors in dealing with a defence of consumption: (a) the rate of drug consumption; (b) the frequency of supply; (c) whether the accused had the financial means to purchase the drugs for himself; and (d) whether he had made a contrary admission in any of his statements that the whole quantity of drugs was for sale |
13. Applicable Rules
| Rule Name |
|---|
| No applicable rules |
14. Applicable Statutes
| Statute Name | Jurisdiction |
|---|---|
| Misuse of Drugs Act (Cap 185, 2008 Rev Ed) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code (Cap 68, 2012 Rev Ed) | Singapore |
| Criminal Procedure Code 2010 (2020 Rev Ed) | Singapore |
15. Key Terms and Keywords
15.1 Key Terms
- Diamorphine
- Trafficking
- Misuse of Drugs Act
- CNB
- HSA
- Bailee
- Consumption
15.2 Keywords
- Diamorphine
- Trafficking
- Misuse of Drugs Act
- Singapore
- Criminal Law
16. Subjects
- Criminal Law
- Drug Trafficking
17. Areas of Law
- Criminal Law
- Statutory offences
- Misuse of Drugs Act