FORMER transport minister S Iswaran was placed on the home detention scheme on Friday (Feb 7).
In response to queries from The Straits Times, a spokesperson for the Singapore Prison Service (SPS) said: “Iswaran is eligible for the home detention scheme. He has been assessed suitable for emplacement on the scheme as he is of low risk of re-offending, did not commit any institutional offence in prison and has strong family support.”
SPS said eligible prisoners are considered for the home detention scheme when they have served at least 14 days or half of their sentence after remission, whichever is later.
Remission is usually issued when an inmate has completed two-thirds of their sentence. In Iswaran’s case, this would be eight months of his 12-month term.
He has spent four months in jail since he began his sentence on Oct 7, 2024.
SPS said prisoners are assessed for their suitability for the home detention scheme by taking into consideration various factors, such as their conduct, and progress and response to rehabilitation during incarceration.
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SPS added that a prisoner is eligible to be released on the home detention scheme for a period not exceeding 12 months to facilitate his rehabilitation and reintegration into society.
Iswaran will serve his remaining sentence at his residence under specified conditions, added the spokesperson.
These include curfew monitoring using an electronic monitoring tag, being occupied either in work, study or training, and reporting to SPS for counselling.
In 2024, about 44 per cent of the inmates eligible for the home detention scheme were found suitable for emplacement on the scheme.
On Oct 3, Iswaran was handed a 12 months’ jail term in a case that saw, for the first time, a former Cabinet minister being sentenced.
The punishment was almost double the six to seven months’ jail the prosecution had sought.
He had pleaded guilty to five charges on Sep 24, on what was to be the first day of a highly anticipated trial in which he aimed to clear his name.
The four charges he admitted to comprised obtaining valuable items as a public servant from Ong Beng Seng, 79, chairman of Formula 1 race promoter Singapore Grand Prix, and David Lum, managing director of construction company Lum Chang Holdings.
The fifth charge was for obstructing the course of justice, by making payment of $5,700 for a business-class flight he had taken from Doha to Singapore in 2022 at Ong’s expense.
Iswaran made the payment to throw off the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau, which found his name in a flight manifest it had seized while investigating Ong’s associates.
Ong was charged on Oct 4, 2024, with abetting Iswaran in obtaining gifts and with abetting the obstruction of justice. THE STRAITS TIMES
