Singapore carries out third drug-related execution since last week
Singapore, Aug 3 (EFE).- Singapore executed Thursday a prisoner for trafficking around 54 grams of heroin, in what was the third drug-related execution in the city-state since last week.
Mohamed Shalleh Bin Adul Lattif, a 39-year old Singapore citizen, was executed on being found guilty of possessing no less than 54.04 grams of diamorphine, or heroin, for the purpose of trafficking, the Central Narcotics Bureau said in a statement.
This is the third execution in the country since Wednesday last week, when a 56-year-old man, also a native of the country and whose identity was protected by the family, was sent to the gallows for trafficking around 50 grams of heroin.
On Friday, the island authorities executed Singaporean Saridewi Djamani for trafficking around 30 grams of heroin, becoming the first woman to be executed in nearly two decades.
A total five prisoners have been executed since April, and 16 since March 2022 for drug offenses, according to estimates by the nonprofit Transformative Justice Collective.
The year’s first execution in April, sparked criticism all around as the person was convicted for attempting to traffic marijuana – whose consumption is legal in neighboring countries such as Thailand.
Moreover, concerns were raised about the judicial process, given that the person concerned and those from his circle claimed he had never seen or touched the drug.
The UN unsuccessfully called on Singapore to halt the execution.
The prosperous city-state, with one of the highest per capita GDP on the planet, has the death penalty for drug trafficking in cases involving a minimum of 500 grams of marijuana and 15 grams in the case of heroin.
After a two-year halt in executions due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Singapore broke records last year by hanging 11 prisoners in a few months, including a heroin trafficker with mental disabilities. EFE
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