KUALA LUMPUR – Malaysian Nagaenthran Dharmalingam, who is on death row in Singapore, was granted a temporary stay of execution by the city-state’s appellate court this afternoon.
Lawyer N. Surendran told The Vibes that proceedings have been postponed because Nagaenthran tested positive for Covid-19.
Nagaenthran was arrested in 2009 for trafficking a small amount of heroin into the city-state, which has some of the world's toughest drugs laws. He was sentenced to death the following year.
He was scheduled to be hanged tomorrow after losing a series of appeals, despite mounting international outrage and supporters’ claims his intellectual disability means he cannot make rational decisions.
The execution was put on hold after a last-resort appeal was lodged, with the Court of Appeal due to hear the challenge today.
AFP reported that before the hearing could start, judge Andrew Phang Boon Leong told the court that Nagaenthran had contracted Covid-19.
“We have to issue a stay of execution,” he said. There was no immediate indication of how long the stay would last for. – The Vibes, November 9, 2021
