Woman brutally slain and mutilated

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PUBLISHED : 31 Jul 2023 at 13:18

Woman brutally slain and mutilated
Police arrest Khajondet Jampathong, 23, outside the block of flats where a woman was savagely murdered, in Muang district, Samut Prakan, on Sunday. (Photo: Sutthiwit Chayutworakan)

SAMUT PRAKAN: A 23-year-old man has been arrested after a woman neighbour was beaten to death by a man wielding two hammers and then sexually mutilated with a knife.

Police detained Khajondet Jampathong on Sunday while he was seated in front of Charoenchai Condo 2 building on Soi Sri Boonruang 2 Road in tambon Thepharak of Muang district.

A 59-year-old woman who lived in a neighbourig flat, Jitra Chantharunai, was dead at the scene. She had been savagely attacked about 11.30am.

Police pieced the story together from a surveillance camera recording that showed part of the attack and witness accounts. They said Jitra was a municipal street cleaner. On Sunday she had been at a drinking party with other neighbours at a local grocery store before walking to Mr Khajondet’s room.

The two had talked and then argued for a while, and then she fell to the ground. A man approached her and hit her on the head repeatedly with two hammers. He then dragged her to an empty parking space, took off her trousers and used a knife to cut out her genitals, which he laid beside the body.

The killer then he stood up and stared at the body. Police reached the scene shortly after. At the scene, police found a 25-centimetre-long kitchen knife, a claw hammer with a broken handle and a sledge hammer.

Village headman Chamlong Phumphan said the suspect, Mr Khajondet, had finished his air force service as a private a month ago. The man had returned and stayed with his father in the same building. He often talked to himself.

Mr Chamlong also said the slain woman was drunk when the two argued.

Her son Damrongsak Sakaew was in shock. He said his mother had never had any dispute with her killer. 

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Court of Three Judges acquits MP Christopher de Souza of misconduct as a lawyer

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THE CASE

The case stems from when Mr de Souza was acting in his capacity as a partner of law firm Lee & Lee for Amber Compounding Pharmacy and Amber Laboratories in a High Court suit.

Amber was initially represented by law firm Dodwell & Co and was suing a former employee and her company for allegedly stealing trade secrets.

The Dodwell & Co lawyers were granted search orders to obtain documents and information from the defendants, with the express undertaking that Amber was not to use any of the information or documents obtained except for the court proceedings in the High Court suit. 

A total of 116,298 documents were seized in April 2018 under the search orders, and Amber breached its undertakings by making three reports in 2018 to the Ministry of Manpower, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau and the Singapore Police Force, disclosing 10 documents.

This happened before Mr de Souza and Lee & Lee took over the case. They were approached in November 2018 to act for Amber over the reports made to the authorities.

Internal correspondence at Lee & Lee shows that Mr de Souza and his colleagues knew about the breach and had advised Amber to take immediate steps to remedy it.

However, the disciplinary tribunal found that Mr de Souza did not ensure that his client did not make full disclosure of the breach in a filing of an affidavit.

ARGUMENTS BEFORE THE COURT OF 3 JUDGES

The Court of Three Judges on Monday morning grilled both LawSoc’s Mr Assomull as well as Mr de Souza’s lead counsel, Senior Counsel Tan Chee Meng.

They questioned Mr Assomull on the framing of the one charge Mr de Souza had been found guilty of, as well as on what LawSoc’s precise case was as to Mr de Souza’s intention to suppress evidence.

As for Mr Tan, the court asked him about how the affidavit was drafted. Mr Tan’s case was that the affidavit did disclose the wrongdoing, and that it simply could have been drafted in a clearer manner.

Justice Woo told him candidly: “It’s not as crystal clear as you’re making it out to be … otherwise, we don’t have to be here today.”

Mr Tan said he agreed that the affidavit could have been better drafted, but he asked whether the lack of clarity exhibited an intention to suppress evidence.

Mr Assomull had argued that internal correspondence at Lee & Lee showed that Mr de Souza was aware of the breach, as well as the importance of disclosing it.

To not do so clearly in the affidavit can only mean one thing, that he intended to suppress it, said Mr Assomull.

If the client had refused to agree to certain facts or wordings that a lawyer felt must be included in an affidavit, then the lawyer had to discharge themselves, said Mr Assomull.

“That is the paramount duty that every lawyer owes to the court,” he said. “First the court – then the client. Not the client, then the court.”

He charged that the team of lawyers knew that if the line revealing the breach had been put in, their application “was doomed to fail”.

Mr Tan said that Mr de Souza did discharge himself, in July 2019, after realising that despite his advice, the client had again used the seized documents.

“The immediate steps taken by Mr de Souza in consultation with Mr Tan Tee Jim was to discharge. He could not stand the nonsense of the client in breaching the undertaking,” said Mr Tan.

“That cannot be the conduct of an officer of the court who wanted to suppress evidence,” he added.

The PAP had previously said in response to CNA’s queries that it would determine the course of action necessary after the Court of Three Judges gives its verdict.

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Law Society asks for four-year suspension for MP Christopher de Souza over misconduct as a lawyer

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THE CASE

The case stems from when Mr de Souza was acting in his capacity as a partner of law firm Lee & Lee for Amber Compounding Pharmacy and Amber Laboratories in a High Court suit.

Amber was initially represented by law firm Dodwell & Co and was suing a former employee and her company for allegedly stealing trade secrets.

The Dodwell & Co lawyers were granted search orders to obtain documents and information from the defendants, with the express undertaking that Amber was not to use any of the information or documents obtained except for the court proceedings in the High Court suit. 

A total of 116,298 documents were seized in April 2018 under the search orders, and Amber breached its undertakings by making three reports in 2018 to the Ministry of Manpower, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau and the Singapore Police Force, disclosing 10 documents.

This happened before Mr de Souza and Lee & Lee took over the case. They were approached in November 2018 to act for Amber over the reports made to the authorities.

Internal correspondence at Lee & Lee shows that Mr de Souza and his colleagues knew about the breach and had advised Amber to take immediate steps to remedy it.

However, the disciplinary tribunal found that Mr de Souza did not ensure that his client did not make full disclosure of the breach in a filing of an affidavit.

ARGUMENTS BEFORE THE COURT OF 3 JUDGES

The Court of Three Judges on Monday morning grilled both LawSoc’s Mr Assomull as well as Mr de Souza’s lead counsel, Senior Counsel Tan Chee Meng.

They questioned Mr Assomull on the framing of the one charge Mr de Souza had been found guilty of, as well as on what LawSoc’s precise case was as to Mr de Souza’s intention to suppress evidence.

As for Mr Tan, the court asked him about how the affidavit was drafted. Mr Tan’s case was that the affidavit did disclose the wrongdoing, and that it simply could have been drafted in a clearer manner.

Justice Woo told him candidly: “It’s not as crystal clear as you’re making it out to be … otherwise, we don’t have to be here today.”

Mr Tan said he agreed that the affidavit could have been better drafted, but he asked whether the lack of clarity exhibited an intention to suppress evidence.

Mr Assomull had argued that internal correspondence at Lee & Lee showed that Mr de Souza was aware of the breach, as well as the importance of disclosing it.

To not do so clearly in the affidavit can only mean one thing, that he intended to suppress it, said Mr Assomull.

If the client had refused to agree to certain facts or wordings that a lawyer felt must be included in an affidavit, then the lawyer had to discharge themselves, said Mr Assomull.

“That is the paramount duty that every lawyer owes to the court,” he said. “First the court – then the client. Not the client, then the court.”

He charged that the team of lawyers knew that if the line revealing the breach had been put in, their application “was doomed to fail”.

Mr Tan said that Mr de Souza did discharge himself, in July 2019, after realising that despite his advice, the client had again used the seized documents.

“The immediate steps taken by Mr de Souza in consultation with Mr Tan Tee Jim was to discharge. He could not stand the nonsense of the client in breaching the undertaking,” said Mr Tan.

“That cannot be the conduct of an officer of the court who wanted to suppress evidence,” he added.

The PAP had previously said in response to CNA’s queries that it would determine the course of action necessary after the Court of Three Judges gives its verdict.

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Singaporean and Briton claim trial in Wirecard case over allegedly falsified documents

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SINGAPORE: Two men linked to collapsed German payments firm Wirecard AG claimed trial in Singapore on Monday (Jul 31) to charges of falsifying documents related to millions held in escrow accounts.

Singaporean R Shanmugaratnam, 57, and Briton James Henry O’Sullivan, 48, denied the charges in a hearing before District Judge Kow Keng Siong in the Singapore State Courts. 

Shanmugaratnam is the director and sole shareholder of Citadelle Corporate Services, a local company providing accounting and auditing services. He was in charge of the company’s operations and was its signatory, with access its OCBC bank accounts. 

He became acquainted with O’Sullivan in 2010 – six years before the alleged offences – when the latter engaged Citadelle to set up companies in Singapore. 

Opening its case on Monday, the prosecution, led by Deputy Public Prosecutor Gordon Oh, said it would proceed on 13 out of 14 charges for Shanmugaratnam and five out of seven charges for O’Sullivan. The remaining charges were stood down for the time being. 

Shanmugaratnam’s charges are for falsifying letters from Citadelle to various parties, including Wirecard AG and its subsidiaries as well as auditors in Germany and Ireland.

The letters stated that large sums of money ranging from €20 million (US$22 million) to €328 million were held by Citadelle in escrow accounts, when in fact these sums did not exist.

In five of the letters, the bank accounts stated did not exist. 

The falsified letters were purportedly prepared between 2016 and 2018. 

O’Sullivan charges are for abetting by instructing Shanmugaratman to issue the letters.  

The prosecution’s case was that Shanmugaratnam prepared the letters wilfully and with intent to defraud – but his lawyer Megan Chia from Tan Rajah and Cheah denied this.

O’Sullivan is represented by lawyer Tito Isaac from Tito Isaac & Co.

The alleged offences occurred against the background of Wirecard’s collapse in Germany. In October 2019, media outlet Financial Times wrote about Wirecard AG’s suspect accounting practices.

Allegations of a concerted effort to fraudulently inflate sales and profits of Wirecard businesses in Dubai and Ireland, in order to potentially mislead Wirecard AG’s auditor, were also surfaced.

Following the report, between October 2019 and April 2020, Wirecard AG appointed KPMG AG in Germany to investigate the allegations. 

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Bukit Panjang LRT to close early over two weekends in August amid ongoing renewal works

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SINGAPORE: Train services for Bukit Panjang LRT (BPLRT) will end earlier over two weekends in August amid ongoing renewal works. 

There will also be a full-day closure on Oct 1, said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) on Monday (Jul 31).

On the affected weekends –  Aug 12, 13, 19 and 20 – train services will end an hour earlier at 10.30pm.

During this period, commuters can take existing bus services that ply the Bukit Panjang and Choa Chu Kang areas to continue their journey. These include Services 67, 171, 920, 922, 960, 963, 972, 972M, 973, 974 and 976.

During the full Sunday closure in October, an additional shuttle bus service will be provided along the LRT Service B route.

The closure of train services is to facilitate the upgrading of Bukit Panjang LRT’s operations control centre, with upgrading works “carried out in phases to minimise inconvenience to commuters”, said LTA.

Works include migrating to an interim operations control centre to allow the existing system to be upgraded, as well as transitioning back to the upgraded centre when it is completed in three years’ time.

The centre, which has been in operation since 1999, controls and monitors the signalling, power supply and communications systems. 

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Most first-time voters understand President’s roles, less clear on relationship with government: CNA-TODAY survey

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POLITICAL AFFILIATION 

The issue of an elected President’s ties with political parties has been a divisive topic among the three presidential hopefuls since they announced their intention to run. 

Mr Tharman, who has been a People’s Action Party (PAP) Member of Parliament since 2001, resigned from the ruling party and left politics on Jul 7.

When questioned about his independence at the official launch of his presidential bid on Jul 26, Mr Tharman cited the example of former President Ong Teng Cheong, who was a Cabinet minister and even chairman of the PAP for many years before he became Singapore’s head of state. 

He emphasised his “independence of mind”, highlighting the difference between that and “independence from any past affiliation with a political party”.

In response to questions about Mr Tharman’s stand, fellow presidential hopeful Mr Goh said a day later that it is difficult for someone to become independent “overnight” after having been in Singapore’s political system for decades. 

Mr Goh is best known as the founder of Harvey Norman Ossia, which distributes consumer electronics and furniture in Asia under the Australian brand.

Mr Ng, another presidential hopeful and the former chief investment officer of Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, has also spoken about his lack of political affiliations. He said Singapore needs a president who is “independent of any political party to safeguard the integrity of our institutions”.

From the survey questions on the President’s links with political parties, 65.4 per cent of respondents knew that the elected individual must not be a member of any political party. 

About 56.3 per cent of respondents knew that a political party can endorse the elected President, while a higher 66.4 per cent knew that the elected President cannot endorse a political party. 

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Good awareness among Singaporeans about President’s roles but more public education needed on power dynamics: Analysts

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PUBLIC EDUCATION NEEDED ON “SPECIFICITIES” Analysts generally agree that it is important to educate voters on these issues. Political observer from the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Felix Tan said it is “definitely a concern” that Singaporeans do not have a strong awareness about the relationship between the President, the parliamentContinue Reading

Former candidate Tan Kin Lian applies for eligibility certificate for 2023 Presidential Election

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Potential candidates have been able to apply for a Certificate of Eligibility since Jun 13 – the first step in order to enter the presidential race. Prospective candidates must also submit a community declaration.

To qualify, the prospective candidate must have held a senior public office or helmed a company that has at least S$500 million (US$370 million) in shareholders’ equity for at least three years.

The contender must also be a Singapore citizen, be at least 45 years old on Nomination Day and not belong to any political party.

FORMER PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE

In 2011, Mr Tan Kin Lian competed against former deputy prime minister Dr Tony Tan, Progress Singapore Party founder Tan Cheng Bock and opposition politician Tan Jee Say. Dr Tan won the final vote in the 2011 polls, gaining 745,693 (35.2 per cent) of the votes.

Mr Tan won 104,085 (4.91 per cent) of the total 2,274,773 votes and lost his deposit for failing to garner more than one-eighth of the total number of votes polled in the election.

Mr Tan became Chief Executive Officer of NTUC Income in 1977, holding the position for 30 years until he left in April 2007. 

After he left NTUC Income, Mr Tan started a business in computer software and has also travelled regularly to provide insurance consultancy in Indonesia. 

According to the Straits Times, Mr Tan had served as the People’s Action Party’s branch secretary at Marine Parade in the 1970s.

He was picked by former senior minister Goh Chok Tong – then a Member of Parliament – to test a pilot scheme for setting up block committees, now known as residents’ committees. 

Mr Tan left the party in 2008, after being in Marine Parade GRC for 10 years before remaining largely inactive for 20 years when he moved to Yio Chu Kang. 

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Herbal medicine a worthy alternative

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Herbal medicine a worthy alternative
Traditional herbs, made into capsules and pills for ease of consumption and commercially packaged, are sold at the expo.

Crisis has turned into opportunity for Thai traditional medicine (TTM) as it has made wider inroads into the treatment of patients following the Covid-19 pandemic.

The definition of Thainess can be intertwined with various concepts from religious beliefs down to street food, and TTM is quickly gaining ground as an integral element of Thai culture, observers say.

Traditional medicine offers alternative treatments using diverse traditional herbs.

The 20th National Herbs Expo, hosted by the Ministry of Public Health from June 28 to July 2, showed use of Thai herbs has surged following the pandemic, just as industry professionals have claimed.

Despite some lingering scepticism surrounding herbal remedies, the expo drew numerous experts, entrepreneurs and visitors. It set the stage for people in the industry to exchange their knowledge and experience on the wonders of Thai traditional medicine.

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, herbs were mainly considered a dietary supplement or food rather than medicine, and the majority of TTM users were elders.

However, during the height of the pandemic stocks of medicine were limited as people began stocking up on medicine when the nation’s borders closed, resulting in a shortage of many modern medicines on which the country was heavily reliant.

Dr Pakakrong Kwankhao, head of the Thai Traditional and Herbal Medicine Centre at Chao Phya Abhaibhubejhr Hospital, said the shortage of modern medicine during the pandemic forced a shift in people’s attitude towards traditional treatment.

Dr Pakakrong noticed an increase in younger herbal medicine users as news spread about traditional herbs’ medicinal properties and their ability, in the eyes of some, to help prevent and treat Covid-19. More patients recovered using traditional herbs, which became an alternative to modern medicine.

According to Adisorn Pukanad of the Thai Traditional Medicine Foundation, TTM is easily accessible. Patients do not have to visit the hospital or need a doctor’s prescription to obtain the medicine.

“Although the efficacy may be lower, it is friendlier to health,” he said.

Herbal medicine is also consumed with greater ease in the form of capsules.

According to Herbal One company, which sells herbal medicinal products, most consumers aged 30 and above are starting to acknowledge the effectiveness of the capsules, along with their comparative advantages in price and convenience.

“Thai herbs don’t produce severe side effects because they are from nature. They come in several forms such as medicine, food, cosmetics,” he said, noting that modern medicine has a specific use and is designed mainly for treatment.

The TTM isn’t limited to consuma­- bles.

Jua Inthan, a traditional massage therapist, said the herbal mixture contained in the luk prakob (herbal compress ball), a mainstay for massaging a person, can both be therapeutic and soothing. The balls are steamed before use.

The liquid from the herb can seep out of the luk prakob during massage and gets absorbed into the pores of the skin. That, coupled with the warm luk prakbo, is believed to enhance blood circulation, she said.

As the number of TTM users expanded, so did initial doubts about their efficacy and health safety.

Critics arguing against the TTM’s efficacy cited insufficient scientific evidence and laboratory findings for some herbal cures.

Shoppers look for bargains at the recent 20th National Herbs Expo hosted by the Ministry of Public Health. Thai medicinal herbs have gained in popularity over the years as an alternative treatment for patients with various ailments. Photos supplied by the expo

According to the critics, most of the knowledge about traditional herbs is derived from practitioners’ experience and often unverified historical records.

Dr Pakakrong said that 40 years ago, herbal doctors only accounted for about 2–3% of all medical professionals. The rest were modern doctors.

Herbs assumed the status of garden vegetables unworthy of being developed into health-safe and reliable medicinal products, so had an almost non-existent place in the hospital treatment of patients. In addition, medical schools primarily teach medical lessons rooted in Western knowledge.

At the Chaophraya Abhaibhubejhr Hospital, a group of professionals is conducting research to support the efficacy of herbs to cure diseases. Currently, the hospital is utilising herbs to treat patients with sleeping disorder and some chronic conditions.

To meet surging demand for herbal medicine, many hospitals and firms are collaborating with local farms to grow more herbs. The herbs that are not suitable for cultivation in a tropical climate will be purchased through import wholesalers.

In the promotion of Thai herbs overseas, the Department of Medical Science (DMS) has been conducting laboratory work to study the safety of herbs for consumers. The work focuses on the genetic toxicity of herbs under the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development and Good Laboratory Practice guidelines.

Patamaporn Prueksakorn, a pharmacist at the DMS, said a thorough study and lab certification will be a boon to the commercial promotion and sales of Thai herbs overseas. This is because the herbs will not have to undergo quality checks at the destination countries again.

Recognising the value of Thai herbal medicine, the Ministry of Public Health established the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine in 2002. Its purpose is to preserve and promote traditional Thai healing methods while integrating Thai medicine into the modern healthcare system.

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