Indian-origin man charged for calling Singapore President's death

Singapore, May 5 An Indian-origin man in Singapore was charged with harassment for allegedly making an online post calling for President Halimah Yacob's death by hanging, according to a media report.

Vickreman Harvey Chettiar, 32, who was out on bail, was previously charged with mischief and harassment, and was handed his third harassment charge on Friday, and also faces one count of mischief, The Straits Times reported.

Chettiar, who made the post on Instagram on April 30 post, is out on bail of (Singaporean) $10,000.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Shaun Lim on Friday applied for Chettiar's bail to be revoked because of the latest charge involving the President, as his bail condition might have been breached.

Lim also told District Judge Janet Wang that Chettiar had shown an escalation in his behaviour and asked for him to be remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH).

Chettiar is also accused of flipping over a table worth (Singaporean) $308, causing it to break, at the Supreme Court building in 2020.

In 2021, he allegedly threatened a police investigation officer on Instagram, saying that he hoped terrorists would attack a police divisional headquarters.

His lawyer Joyce Khoo told Judge Wang that her client had a previous traumatic experience during his earlier remand at IMH (Institute of Mental Health) in 2014.

Wang ordered him to be remanded at IMH for a medical examination, and his case has been adjourned to May 19, The Straits Times reported.

While matters pertaining to his bail will be dealt with later, if Chettiar is convicted of the harassment charge involving the President, he can be jailed for up to a year and fined up to (Singaporean) $5,000.

For mischief, an offender can be jailed for up to a year and fined.

mi/vd