SINGAPORE: Two days after his arrest in a Bishan vape sting operation, a suspected Kpod peddler allegedly tried to get a new passport by lying that he had lost his original document.
This resulted in Jodan Chin Wei Liang, 28, being handed a charge under the Passports Act on Thursday (Nov 20).
Chin was earlier charged with nine offences, most of which involved him possessing vapes and vape pods.
In one charge, he allegedly had more than 800 Kpods in assorted flavours for sale. These flavours came with different names, such as “Zombie” and “Lucifer”.
Kpods are vapes laced with etomidate, a powerful anaesthetic drug meant to be used only to induce sedation by injection into the veins during medical procedures.
When vaped, etomidate enters the lungs, potentially triggering spasms, breathing difficulties, seizures and even psychosis.
Chin was first hauled to court on July 18 after he was detained in a Health Sciences Authority (HSA) operation on July 10 at Bishan Street 13. He was filmed trying to flee from HSA officers.
His newest charge states that on July 12, two days after his arrest, he made a false statement in trying to apply for a new Singapore passport.
He allegedly declared that he had lost his Singapore passport on July 12, despite knowing this was a lie.
Chin now faces 10 charges in total. On Nov 20, he was informed to consider applying for legal assistance.
In a September court mention, Chin tried to apply to leave Singapore to go to Malaysia and Vietnam. He said he was responsible for grocery runs across the border for his family.
But this was rejected by the judge, as Chin had indicated he would leave Singapore for an “unlimited” period. Chin was asked to reapply to leave jurisdiction and state his dates of travel.
If convicted of making a false statement in his passport application, Chin can be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to S$10,000 or both.
Possessing imitation tobacco products and components for sale carries a maximum jail term of six months, a fine of up to $10,000, or both, while the penalty for possessing such items for purposes other than for sale is a maximum $2,000 fine.
Under the Poisons Act, those found in possession of or using Kpods can be jailed for up to two years, fined up to $10,000 or both. - The Straits Times/ANN
