In rare move, Singapore commutes drug trafficker’s sentence from death to life in prison
Home affairs ministry says clemency – exercised as an act of ‘executive grace’ – was granted to reduce the ‘disparity’ in the sentences of Tan and his co-offender
The 33-year-old’s case is believed to be the first time since 1998 that the city state, known for its zero tolerance for drugs, has commuted the death sentence of an inmate on death row. Tan was convicted in 2023 of trafficking not less than 337.6 grams of methamphetamine.
In a letter from Julius Lim, principal private secretary to the president, and seen by This Week in Asia, Tan was granted clemency by President Tharman Shanmugaratnam on behalf of the cabinet.
“I am directed to refer to the petitions for clemency of Tristan Tan Yi Rui and to inform you that the President, on the advice of the Cabinet, has commuted the death sentence passed on Tristan Tan Yi Rui and ordered that he be imprisoned for life, which sentence of life imprisonment is to commence from 27 September 2018,” Lim wrote in the letter dated Thursday.
In Singapore, those found to have trafficked more than 250 grams of methamphetamine face the death penalty.
The Ministry of Home Affairs on Friday night said the cabinet was advised that the sentence imposed on Tan was legally sound. However, clemency was granted because of the specific facts and circumstances of the case.