Indian-origin man jailed in Singapore for bomb hoax call

An Indian-origin man has been jailed for four months over 2004 hoax call about a bomb at the house of late founding Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew.

Ganesan Singaravel, now 61, was sentenced on Monday after he pleaded guilty to an offence under the Telecommunications Act, The New newspaper reported on Tuesday.

A court here was told that Singaravel went to a popular spot in Orchard Tower on Singapore's hotel belt of Orchard Road around midnight on November 13, 2004, and drank alcohol until about 4 a.m. Later, the police said they received a call from Singaravel, who made references to a bomb at Lee's house.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Benjamin Samynathan said: "The call was made by the accused from a public phone located next to the Thai embassy. The call's message was clearly false and the accused knew that the text of the call was false.

"A patrol car was sent to Orchard Towers to interview and arrest the accused. The accused was coherent during his interactions with the officers at the scene. Meanwhile, the officers who were already stationed at Oxley Road were told to step up patrols and be alert and vigilant," he added.

Singaravel was charged on November 16, 2004, but while out on bail, he fled Singapore about two months later. He was caught overstaying in the US last year and told the authorities there that he wanted to return to Singapore. He was detained when he came back here on July 15 last year.

Defence lawyers said in their mitigation plea that their client was drunk when he committed the offence.

--IANS

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