SINGAPORE: Days before his failed escape bid, Chew Eng Han vowed that he would not return to City Harvest Church unless there was a change of leadership.
“I won’t go back, unless the whole leadership is removed – the current leadership,” said Chew in an interview with Channel NewsAsia last Monday (Feb 12).
Just nine days after he made that statement – and a day before he was due to begin his jail term – Chew was arrested on Wednesday morning for attempting to flee Singapore in a motorised sampan.
His boat was intercepted by Police Coast Guard vessels off Pulau Ubin at about 8.45am, after authorities received a tip-off.
The motorised sampan in which Chew Eng Han tried to flee Singapore. (Photo: Gaya Chandramohan)
The 57-year-old was one of six City Harvest leaders, including church founder Kong Hee, convicted in 2015 of misappropriating S$50 million of church funds. Chew was sentenced to six years’ jail, which was later reduced to three years and four months on appeal.
The five other leaders began their sentences on Apr 21 last year, while Chew had his imprisonment delayed after he launched several attempts to challenge his conviction.
After losing his final challenge, he was to surrender himself on Feb 22. He had asked the court to defer his sentence for one last time to spend Chinese New Year with his family.
During his interview with Channel NewsAsia, Chew said he left City Harvest in 2013 – the year the trial began – and is now part of a small fellowship that meets every Thursday.
Chew also insisted that his friends and family did not doubt him. His family was staying “relatively strong” despite the long-running saga, he said.
On Monday – two days before he was arrested at sea – Chew cancelled another interview with Channel NewsAsia. The interview was to be held on Tuesday at Bedok Jetty, where he is said to sometimes seek solitude.
In a WhatsApp message to this Channel NewsAsia reporter, Chew said he had “too many things” on his plate.
If found guilty of leaving Singapore unlawfully, Chew could be jailed up to six months, fined up to S$2,000 or both.
