On May 5, a 32-year-old man named Vickreman Harvey Chettiar was brought back to court for allegedly making a social media post that threatened to cause bodily harm to President Halimah Yacob. Vickreman was out on bail for a charge related to committing mischief and two charges under the Protection from Harassment Act when he allegedly made the threat.
He is facing a new charge under the Protection from Harassment Act for making a threatening communication with the intent to provoke the use of unlawful violence against the President of Singapore. The alleged post was made on his Instagram account on April 30 at around 7 am.
In the post, Vickreman allegedly wrote that President Halimah Yacob deserved to be dragged out of the Presidential Palace by Singapore patriots, brought to near the Parliament House, strung up from lamp-post 4F, and hanged by the neck until all life has completely departed her body.
Although the original post that contained the alleged threat could not be found, a post was uploaded onto the Instagram highlight feature around May 2, titled "Lim Kopi," which juxtaposed the alleged threat against President Halimah alongside another post about Vickreman's opposition to the hanging of Tangaraju Suppiah, who was executed on April 26 for trafficking cannabis.
In addition to the new charge, Vickreman faces two other charges under the Protection from Harassment Act. One charge is related to a post he allegedly made on Instagram on November 18, 2021, where he claimed to have been raped by another man and would be grateful to any vigilante who is willing to hunt down and castrate the rapist. Vickreman included the man's home address in the post.
The second charge relates to another Instagram post on November 15, 2021, in which he allegedly used threatening words against an investigation officer from the Singapore Police Force. Vickreman is alleged to have written: “I sincerely hope that terrorism will occur in Singapore targeted at the police”.
He allegedly wanted the Bedok Police Divisional headquarters to be leveled by such a terrorist act so that the “pigs therein,” including the investigation officer, are roasted in the burning building.
The court heard on May 5 that Vickreman's latest offences took place while he was out on bail for other non-related cases. For the charge of mischief, Vickreman is alleged to have flipped over and broken a marble table, worth around S$308, at the Supreme Court on the morning of February 3, 2020.
During the hearing, the Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) called for Vickreman's bail to be revoked and for him to be remanded in the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for a medical assessment. Vickreman's lawyer, who was assigned to the case through the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme, did not object to the prosecutor's application.
However, she told the court that her client had a previous traumatic experience of being remanded at IMH and requested special care or arrangements to be considered by IMH for her client. District Judge Wang granted the application by the prosecution, and Vickreman is scheduled to return to court on May 19.
If Vickreman is found guilty of threatening President Halimah, he could be fined up to S$5,000 or jailed up to a year or both. If found guilty of the mischief charge, he could be jailed up to a year, fined, or both. If found guilty of calling for his alleged rapist to be hurt, Vickreman could be fined up to S$5,000 or jailed up to six months or both.
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