An Indian-origin man in Singapore has pleaded guilty to calling the country's first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew's house with a bomb hoax back in 2004.
Ganesan Singaravel, 61, was intoxicated when he called the late Singapore PM's residence in the early hours of November 13, 2004, from a public telephone booth. He then spoke about a bomb in Yew's house.
Two months after he was formally charged with the crime, Singaravel left for the United States where he was discovered staying beyond his visa in 2018.
He then left for Singapore where he was detained at the airport and taken into police custody.
"The call was made by the accused from a public phone located next to the Thai Embassy (also on Orchard Road). The call's message was clearly false, and the accused knew that the text of the call was false. A (police) patrol car was sent to Orchard Towers to interview and arrest the accused," Benjamin Samynathan, the public prosecutor in the case, was quoted as telling the court in Singapore, Indian Express reported.
"He was coherent during his interactions with the officers at the scene. Meanwhile, the officers who were already stationed at Oxley Road (Lee's house) were told to step up patrols and be alert and vigilant," he added.
However, Singaravel's defence attorney submitted a plea in court stating how his behaviour and alcoholism led to the destruction of his life, including his wife divorcing him and him having no money.
