The Singapore Police Force (SPF) has submitted all its investigation findings to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) surrounding the suicide of police officer Uvaraja S/O Gopal.

Presenting the findings in parliament on Feb. 6, 2024, Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam said in his ministerial statement some of Uvaraja's allegations against the SPF were true.

However, investigations were made into these allegations at the time of the complaints, and actions were taken with some officers disciplined.

Some of the other allegations Uvaraja made were false, said Shanmugam.

He said that the most recent findings had been submitted to the Attorney-General's Chamber (AGC), which reviewed the findings and was satisfied that no further actions needed to be taken.

Police officer made several claims before his death

Uvaraja was found motionless at the foot of a Yishun HDB flat on Jul. 21, 2023.

He posted on Facebook before his death, detailing his unhappiness and alleged racial discrimination he faced at work.

Uvaraja described in his post how he was allegedly bullied and shunned in his workplace, claiming, among others, that he was the target of racial insults and that he experienced a "toxic work culture".

Officers did use racial slurs, but not targeted at him

Shanmugam said that police records showed that Uvaraja did make a complaint in 2015, and internal investigations were conducted at the time.

The investigations found that the officers who used racially inappropriate language were talking amongst themselves, and the remarks were not explicitly directed or aimed at Uvaraja.

"But, and this is an important point, the remarks were not acceptable at all," Shanmugam said.

He pointed out that it did not matter if the remarks were directed at Uvaraja,

"They were and are not acceptable, period."

Racism cannot be tolerated, not even as a joke: Shanmugam

Uvaraja's superiors made it clear to the team that such language could not be used, even as a joke, and the officer who made the remark apologised to Uvaraja immediately.

Uvaraja's superiors monitored the situation to ensure there were no further recurrences.

Uvaraja's deputy commander offered the option of lodging an official complaint against the officer, but Uvaraja declined to lodge a further complaint.

"We cannot tolerate racism, nor can we tolerate casual racism, snide remarks, jokes which are racist."

Claims of toxic work environment

Uvaraja claimed his superior tore up his leave form in 2019 and uploaded the video of the act to the team's group chat.

Shanmugam explained that Uvaraja applied for discretionary time off, which does not require submitting a leave form.

However, he was said to have submitted the leave form at the last minute when other officers' leave had already been approved.

Investigations showed that Uvaraja's superior told him he was "inconveniencing the entire team", but he did not withdraw his request for leave and asked the superior to end the conversation in a personal chat.

The superior then videoed himself shredding Uvaraja's leave form and uploaded a video of him doing it to the team chat.

Superior's conduct not professional

"The superior's conduct was not professional. He should not have done that, even though one can understand his unhappiness," said Shanmugam.

The superior was reprimanded, and Uvaraja was temporarily reassigned to another unit so that both officers could cool off.

Another claim Uvaraja made was that his superiors used abusive language against him, which Shanmugam said was not supported by the investigations' findings.

Shanmugam said that Uvaraja often messaged or called his superiors directly, and they would respond to him with a professional message.

Complaints of cover-up not made out

Uvaraja also claimed that in 2021, he blew the whistle on officers he caught vaping, but the case was "covered up".

Shanmugam stated that acting on Uvaraja's information, Uvaraja's commander directed an independent superior from a different unit to conduct a surprise check on all the lockers and personal belongings within the police compound.

Officers concerned were interviewed as well.

However, the complaint was not made out.

In a separate incident in January 2023, Uvaraja reported some of his fellow officers for smoking within the police compound.

Investigations did find evidence of this, and the officers were referred to the police's internal affairs office, and disciplinary actions were taken against them.

"So when the complaint is made out, disciplinary action is taken. He was told the complaint was not made out. No cover-up," said Shanmugam

Untrue that police officer was held back in his career

Uvaraja claimed that he never received a good appraisal from his superior, and his superior would not allow him to post out due to "manpower issues".

Shanmugam said it was false, as Uvaraja was given opportunities to apply for postings like his colleagues.

When he asked to be transferred, his superiors helped facilitate and accede to his request whenever possible.

In nine years, Uvaraja was transferred to six different work units, which Shanmugam said was a significant number of postings.

Two transfers were related to whistleblowing on the alleged smoking offences, as he felt uncomfortable working with those colleagues.

Investigations also found that his performance grades fairly assessed his work contributions. He was also awarded the Covid-19 resilience medal.

Not true colleagues "boycotted" his wedding

According to Shanmugam, Uvaraja's claim that colleagues "boycotted" his wedding was also found to be untrue.

His Officer-in-Charge had accepted the invitation but could not attend because he had fallen sick, and he apologised to Uvaraja.

Uvaraja informed his Commanding Officer (CO) about the wedding but did not follow up with an invitation. The CO congratulated him in front of his teammates.

Had three ongoing investigations

Shanmugam said that at the time of his death, Uvaraja was the subject of three ongoing criminal and disciplinary investigations.

He was investigated for offences under the Penal Code and the Protection from Harassment Act.

He was also under internal disciplinary investigations for disobedience of orders arising from an incident in July 2023, where he left his house after being granted medical leave from duty.

That was when he got into an argument with his family at that flat, leading to calls to the police and police reports lodged against him.

In April 2023, Uvaraja was under another internal disciplinary investigation for disobeying orders by leaving his work uncompleted and unattended. He also refused to comply when told to return to finish the tasks.

Took over 50 days of medical leave each year

Shanmugam pointed out that in 2016, 2017, 2021, 2022 and 2023, Uvaraja took 70 days, 56 days, 59 days, 80 days and 60 days of medical leave, respectively.

In 2015, 2016 and 2022, he also took over 100 days of no-pay leave.

Shanmugam stated that SPF went to considerable lengths to accommodate Uvaraja's needs, including his leave and medical needs.

Officer's passing has affected colleagues

Shanmugam said that Uvaraja's passing and his allegations have affected his colleagues.

"His fellow officers who had worked with him across various postings and who were aware of his situation felt sad that he had taken his life," Shanmugam said.

"But they were also disappointed with the untrue claims and allegations he had made against the police force."

No cover-up: Shanmugam

Shanmugam said that the police viewed cases of errant officers seriously and had taken action against them.

"No cover-up. But as I said, these are the exceptions. A very small number of exceptions. The vast majority of our officers are honest."

However, for Uvaraja's case, he said the findings paint "quite a different picture" than the accusations made in Uvaraja's post.

"Our officers know that when there are false or unfair allegations we will act quickly and decisively to tell the truth and stand by the officers."

Helplines

If you or someone you know are in mental distress, here are some hotlines you can call to seek help, advice, or just a listening ear:

SOS 24-hour Hotline: 1-767

Singapore Association for Mental Health: 1800-283-7019

Institute of Mental Health: 6389-2222 (24 hours)

Tinkle Friend: 1800-274-4788 (for primary school-aged children)

SHECARES@SCWO: Call: 8001 01 4616 | WhatsApp: 6571 4400 (for targets of online harms)

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Top photos via MCI/YouTube