KUALA LUMPUR: The government will appeal to Singapore to grant clemency to Michael Garing (pix), a Malaysian due to be executed on Friday, said Minister in Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Liew Vui Keong.
The de facto law minister said the government made the similar representations to Singapore previously on the execution of Prabu Pathmanathan.
“However, Singapore has taken the stand that they have their laws to comply with and we have to respect their decision. We will continue to send our representation and protest on this issue as we have done before,” Liew said at the Parliament lobby today.
Singapore Changi Prison authorities informed the family of Garing last week that he would be executed this Friday.
It was reported that Garing of Sarawak was part of a gang involved in a robbery at an open field at Kallang Road, Singapore, in May 2010 which led to the death of a 41-year-old construction worker Shanmuganathan Dillidurai. Three others were severely injured.
On April 20, 2015, Garing was sentenced to death for the murder of Shanmuganathan while another accused, Tony Imba, was jailed for life with 24 strokes of rotan.
Another gang member, Hairee Landak, was sentenced in 2013 to 33 years’ imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane, while Donny Meluda, who went on the run for more than six years, was given a similar sentence in 2018.
Singapore carried out the death sentence on Prabu for trafficking drugs into Singapore on Oct 26 2018.
Prabu was sentenced to death for committing several acts preparatory to and for the purposes of trafficking 227.82g of diamorphine or heroin into the island state on Dec 31, 2014.
The execution drew condemnation from rights activists, who said Prabu’s confession was obtained under duress.
