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SINGAPORE: A Chinese couple on trial for obstructing COVID-19 contact tracing efforts will be unable to return to China before the trial resumes in January, following a High Court review of a district judge’s decision that granted them permission to leave Singapore.
Judge Vincent Hoong agreed on Monday (October 19) to the prosecution’s request to overturn the decision of District Judge Ng Peng Hong.
Judge Ng had granted the request on October 9 for Hu Jun, 39, and his wife Shi Sha, 37, to leave Singapore for China and return in January before the trial resumes.
Judge Ng had increased the bail by S $ 80,000 each and imposed conditions such as providing his travel details to his investigating officer.
This was after the couple’s lawyer, Dhanwant Singh, said their clients had been away from home for a long time and that Hu needed to return to China for business reasons.
Deputy Prosecutor Timotheus Koh had objected and said the couple would elope as neither of them have ties or roots in Singapore.
“All we have is that the defendants say they will not run away. This is not enough,” Koh said.
The trial judge granted the request after hearing from the couple’s guarantors and Shi, who said that she and her husband had cooperated during the investigation and will return to Singapore “in a very responsible manner.”
READ: COVID-19: Chinese couple claim lawsuit for withholding information from officers, obstructing contact tracing
“HIGH RISKS OF FLIGHT”
The prosecutor on Monday reiterated his reasons for asking the High Court to require the couple to remain in Singapore until the proceedings are concluded.
He said both Hu and Shi are “at high risk of flight” as they are foreign nationals in Singapore with special passes, with no job or family here.
He added that the S $ 80,000 increase in bail, requested by the district judge, was not enough to mitigate the high risk of flight.
“Most pertinently, there is no indication that the trial judge has considered the source of the funds being advanced for bail or the steps that the surety would take to fulfill their duty to ensure that the defendants return to Singapore. to answer the charges against him. “said Mr. Koh.
If the couple leaves Singapore, “they will be out of reach in a different jurisdiction … with which we have no extradition treaty,” he added.
Defense attorney Dhanwant Singh urged the High Court judge to dismiss the prosecution’s request, saying that the district judge had granted his clients their request to leave Singapore after having “considered all factors”.
In response to the prosecutor’s argument that the defense had not produced documents to support its offer, Singh said that it had attached a document from Hu’s employer.
The employer said Hu earned 500,000 yuan (S $ 101,000) a year for his job as a client administrator and had a good record with no criminal record.
READ: Couple authorized to return to China before COVID-19 trial continues, prosecution seeks review of decision
The prosecution concluded its case in August and the next leg of the trial will begin on January 25 of next year.
Hu and Shi are accused of obstructing contact tracing efforts by health authorities by omitting information on their whereabouts.
If convicted of the crimes, they face penalties of up to six months in jail, a maximum fine of S $ 10,000, or both, for each count.
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