Appeal court overturns death sentence over 1.5 kg of cannabis
Singapore's Court of Appeal set aside the death sentence of Azman bin Mohamed Sanwan, convicted in 2010 of trafficking 1,525.7 grams of cannabis after a 2007 car-park handover. The court ruled his late confession statements inadmissible and found him no more culpable than his two co-accused, whom the trial judge had acquitted.
Singapore’s Court of Appeal set aside the 2010 death sentence of Azman bin Mohamed Sanwan for
trafficking1,525.7 grams of cannabis, ruling on 6 March 2012 that the evidence against him was
flawed.[1][2]Azman had been convicted of a capital charge over a 28 April 2007 handover in the
car park in front of Block 108 Yishun Ring Road, where Central Narcotics Bureau officers watched
him move a paper bag holding the cannabis between two cars.[1][2]
His two companions, Tamil Salvem and Balasubramaniam, were tried with him and acquitted of the
same capital charge, and the prosecution did not appeal their acquittals.[1][2]The appeal court
ruled the self-incriminating statements Azman gave months after his arrest inadmissible, held he
was no more culpable than the two acquitted men, and noted traces of cannabis were found in
Balasubramaniam’s urine but none in Azman’s.[1][2]
Case data
Every number and detail the sources state, with the sources that state it.
Central Narcotics Bureau officers arrested a 64-year-old Singaporean man at a flat near Marsiling Road on 3 November 2026 and seized about 1,554 g of cannabis along with Ice, Ecstasy and cash. During the arrest he bit one officer's thigh through his jeans and spat on two others; he was referred to police for assault and obstruction as drug investigations continued.
ICA image analysts flagged anomalies in a container's scan on 24 September and found 1,290 cannabis blocks hidden in boxes of gloves. The agencies say the 391 kg load was transiting through Singapore; no origin or destination was disclosed and investigations continue.
Singapore permanent resident Anton Andrievsky, 28, was sentenced on 16 September 2026 to 27 months' jail after a parcel from Britain with at least 136 g of cannabis was intercepted at SingPost Centre in September 2025; CNB officers forced entry to his Toa Payoh flat when he refused to open the door.
Singapore's Court of Appeal on 27 May 2022 overturned the conviction of Raj Kumar Aiyachami, who had been on death row for trafficking more than 1.8 kg of cannabis, finding it was a case of mistaken delivery. The court also acquitted his alleged courier, Ramadass Punnusamy, who had been serving life imprisonment.
