Roslan’s family writes to President Tony Tan

Roslan’s family writes to President Tony Tan

He says that the others who testified against him only testified to escape the capital charges themselves

Roslan bin Bakar was arrested on 18 July 2008. He was convicted of trafficking 96.07g of diamorphine and 76.37g of methamphetamine and sentenced to death on 22 April 2010.

Roslan maintains his innocence to this day, saying that he had not been at the scene of the crime. He was convicted mostly based on testimony, and not concrete evidence. He says that the others who testified against him only testified to escape the capital charges themselves. More can be read about his case here and here.

His sister, Haminah, and her son Afiq wrote the following letters to President Tony Tan, urging for Roslan’s case to be looked at again.

Dear Honorable President, Mr Tony Tan 

I am writing in on behalf of my whole family. We come from family of middle income, and due to financial difficulties, I can’t afford to engage a proper lawyer to represent my brother – Roslan Bin Bakar, who has been charged with trafficking and sentenced under the Mandatory Death Penalty.

The whole family would like you, Mr President, to evaluate, in your own wisdom, the case.

Our family would like to bring up a few of the flaws concerning the Investigation. If my brother had been there at Choa Chu Kang, why is it a fact that not a single CNB officer had given evidence that he had been at the scene?

Based on the case raised in the submissions my brother was not given a fair evaluation and consideration by the learned Judge. There isn’t any evidence concrete enough to penalized my brother and sentenced him to death.

I beg you, Mr President, that you will not allow your Cabinet to hang an innocent person.

In believing that my brother is innocent, my whole family urge Our Honorable President to appeal for a retrial of the whole case, and to grant us aid to engage a proper lawyer to represent him strongly in court.

Yours sincerely
Haminah and Family

I am Afiq. I am 15 years old and Mr Roslan bin Bakar is my uncle. I am here to write to you about my feelings towards his death penalty. I feel that it is unfair because he did not deserve it.

Evidence did not point to him, the drugs were not with him when he was at his step-brother’s house. The CNB only used my uncle’s friends’ words to blame him for the possession of the drugs. Oral evidence is usually very difficult to believe because we humans tend to LIE. How can a CNB officer even use oral evidence to point to my uncle and say the drugs belong to him? They did not even see my uncle when they caught his friends with the drug.

If I was caught with something illegal and I said that it was your loved one who did it, would it not be stupid to trust my story?

My uncle wasn’t caught with the drug, his friend was caught with it. My uncle’s bank account didn’t even reach $100. If they checked his bank account and he was hoarding 5 or 6-digit numbers then I would have to admit that he might be involved, but his bank account says otherwise.

Why did the judge sentence him to death without even considering that the oral evidence could be wrong? I’m 15 years old and my teachers taught me that if there is a problem, don’t pick sides. Listen to both parties then decide which is wrong and which is right.

All I hope is that the judge can look into this matter again, and may the President have mercy. God bless him.

Afiq

– Blog: We believe in Second Chances –

: http://webelieveinsecondchances.wordpress.com/2011/09/15/roslans-family-writes-to-the-president/