Malaysian man’s Singapore execution for heroin trafficking sparks new clemency calls
Datchinamurthy Kataiah’s hanging this week will be Singapore’s eleventh execution this year, spurring calls for a death penalty moratorium
If the execution goes through, Datchinamurthy Kataiah, 39, will become the third Malaysian national and the eleventh person to be hanged this year in Singapore.
His family received a notice on Sunday that his hanging will take place on Thursday at Singapore’s Changi prison, according to Kokila Annamalai of the Transformative Collective Justice, which advocates for abolishing the death penalty in Singapore.
Datchinamurthy was arrested in 2011 and later convicted of trafficking about 45 grams (1.6 ounces) of heroin into Singapore. He was to be hanged in 2022 but won a last-minute reprieve pending a legal challenge that was dismissed by the court in August.
Singapore’s strict laws mandate the death penalty for anyone caught carrying more than 15 grams of heroin and 500 grams of cannabis. Critics say the law disproportionately targets low-level traffickers and couriers.
Speaking at a joint news conference via video link with Amnesty International Malaysia and the Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network, Kokila read from a letter from Datchinamurty’s sister, Rani, who has flown to Singapore to spend time with him.