A 43-YEAR-OLD woman tried yesterday to retract her guilty plea for ill-treating three pet dogs, arguing she had pleaded that way because her former lawyer had put her under “fear and extreme pressure”.

While the Chief Justice did not allow her application, he adjourned the case when he discovered she had been told what she was pleading guilty to, only on the day itself.

Chng Leng Khim said she agreed to the guilty plea because her lawyer had told her she could be remanded at a mental institution if she claimed trial instead.

She was also worried about the impact of a trial on her daughter, who is on probation for kicking a policewoman.

She sobbed as she read out her handwritten notes, asking to be “given a fair trial to uncover the truth in the interest of justice”.

CJ Sundaresh Menon was initially unmoved, pointing out Chng had understood the consequences. “The law is such that you can’t be flippant about it.”

He noted that at a pre-trial conference on Feb 5, five days before she made her plea, her lawyer had said she would likely accept the prosecution’s plea bargain offer.

But the CJ later found out, when he questioned the prosecutor responding to Chng’s appeal, that she had been given the statement of facts – a document setting out details of her offences to which she had to admit without reservation – only on Feb 10, the very day she was pleading guilty.

CJ Menon adjourned the case for the prosecution to submit a written explanation for what had transpired between Feb 5 and 10.

He wanted details, such as the negotiations under which the plea was taken, among others.

He told Chng to make a statutory declaration and state, on oath, how she had been pressured.

Chng had moved out of her Paya Lebar Crescent landed home in June 2013, along with her three children, after she stopped paying rent of $1,500 a month.

She left behind a bull mastiff and a chow chow, which were found by the landlord two days later. Both were ill and thin, infested with ticks and surrounded by their urine and faeces.

An emaciated poodle found near the house was traced to her.

The chow chow and poodle were rehomed but the bull mastiff had to be euthanised.

Chng was arrested on June 30 last year.

On Feb 10, she pleaded guilty to two charges of animal cruelty, two counts of keeping a dog without a licence and a charge of failing to comply with an AVA order.

Two other charges – for animal cruelty and for keeping a dog without a licence – were taken into consideration.

At a sentencing hearing on Feb 19, Chng said she wanted to retract her guilty plea. Her lawyer also applied to discharge himself.

Sentencing was adjourned to give another lawyer time to prepare her mitigation plea.

But the second lawyer also discharged himself on Feb 23, when she was sentenced to 10 days’ jail and a fine of $3,100.

selinal@sph.com.sg

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PRICES of durian have been slashed by as much as 50 per cent as heavier rainfall in May and June in Malaysia, the main source of the fruit here, has led to a greater supply.

Popular varieties like Mao Shan Wang (Musang King), a premium durian known for its creamy texture and bittersweet taste, go for as little as $15 per kg at some stalls here, down from a peak of $35 per kg last month.

Prices of non-premium varieties like D101 or D13, which had earlier averaged around $13 per kg, have also dropped to below $10 per kg.

Sellers said their business has picked up in the past week, with their stocks depleted faster.

At Ah Seng Durian at Ghim Moh Market, daily supplies of Mao Shan Wang are often fully reserved by the early part of the the day and long queues can be spotted daily at the stall.

Likewise, Goh Kwee Leng, 65, owner of 717 Trading, said business has picked up in the last week.

“Previously, customers were buying maybe one or two durians.

“Now, they are buying seven or eight, nine or 10,” he added.

Prices for premium durians had peaked at around $35 per kg early last month, due to a poor harvest in April.

There is better news for durian lovers ahead.

Peter Saw, 36, a seller from Delight Fruit, said prices are likely to drop further as a bigger supply is expected with the next round of harvests.

janlee@sph.com.sg

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Singapore is a target for the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) regardless of its participation in the United States-led coalition against the militant group, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Wednesday.

He was explaining that the decision to send a medical team to contribute to the effort against ISIS was made with Singapore’s own interests in mind.

Speaking to Singapore reporters as he wrapped up an official visit to the US capital, he dismissed the notion that Singapore’s increased contribution would make it more of a target.

“We are a target of ISIS anyway.

“The JI (Jemaah Islamiah) were looking for us before we did anything and before we knew they existed,” he said.

“If they see Indonesia and Malaysia as legitimate targets, all the more Singapore, (which) is a rational, open, cosmopolitan country, and not what they think countries should be, and therefore should be attacked.

“So do not think that by lying low, we are not going to be a target.”

Mr Lee announced at a joint press conference with President Barack Obama on Tuesday that Singapore will be sending a medical team to contribute to the effort against ISIS.

Singapore has had detachments in the Middle East at different times since 2014.

It has deployed Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) liaison officers, intelligence fusions officers, an imagery analysis team and an RSAF KC-135 tanker to support air-to-air refuelling operations.

The Ministry of Defence said the deployment will be similar to previous SAF medical deployments during Operation Blue Ridge in Afghanistan.

The SAF will first send a needs assessment and survey team before determining the size of the support team.

As PM Lee explained in the interview: “We will send a team, we will go and recce, understand the circumstances, understand how best we can work and whom we are working with and then we will see how we will do it.

“But we will do it.”

Apart from the contribution to the effort against ISIS, the joint statement released after PM Lee met President Obama in the Oval Office also mentioned that the Singapore Air Force was exploring the possibility of training in the Pacific island of Guam, a US territory that is home to the US Andersen Air Force Base.

Mr Lee said those discussions were still in the preliminary stages.

jeremyau@sph.com.sg

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HarbourFront Centre has become the latest mall to face a rat problem, with the National Environment Agency (NEA) taking action against 13 food shops there for failing to keep their premises clean and having rodent droppings.

It did not specify the names of the outlet and the actions taken but said it had conducted 123 inspections of the “implicated licensed food shops and food stalls within HarbourFront Centre, as well as the common areas”, from January to July this year.

Over the same period, the agency had received 15 instances of feedback on rat activity at the mall, a spokesman said.

An inspection on June 30 had found signs of rat activity at one of the licensed premises, and poor housekeeping and refuse management at another, she added.

Enforcement action will be taken against them, she said. Jasmine Ong, 34, a business development and public relations director, whose office is at HarbourFront Centre, alerted The Straits Times when she saw a rat emerging from a McDonald’s outlet in the mall in June.

“There was (a) commotion. There was a rat scurrying out from under one of the seats at McDonald’s,” she said.

The NEA told her that there was no rodent activity at the outlet. But it said there was a hygiene lapse, and it will be taking enforcement action.

Replying to queries on the lapse, a McDonald’s spokesman said the fast-food chain recognises high hygiene standards as an integral part of its business.

It added that it has a rigorous cleaning protocol, including regular inspections and preventative treatment for pest control.

“We are also working closely with the landlord and can confirm that they facilitate regular inspections within the mall,” she said.

Staff at food courts Food Junction and Bagus, and several other shops said they had not observed any rat problems.

Mapletree Investments, which manages the mall, said: “Our centre has been monitoring the ground situation closely and have taken the necessary measures. We have been vigilant in our pest control and will continue to work jointly with our vendors and tenants.”

The problem at the mall comes shortly after rats were seen earlier in July and June respectively at Marina Bay Financial Centre and Marina Bay Link Mall, which are within the same building.

The NEA took more than 200 enforcement actions against errant premises owners last year, it said on its website.

Operators of food retail establishments found with hygiene lapses, including a failure to keep their licensed premises free from pest infestation, may face up to $2,000 in fines and demerit points. Building operators or mall managements whose premises are found to have a rat infestation may also face a fine of up to $5,000 for the first offence.

jalmsab@sph.com.sg

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