Benny Kee Soon Chuan, 31, a Singaporean man, faces the death penalty on Sep. 20 after he was arrested in Thailand three days prior for allegedly trafficking drugs into Singapore.

If convicted of the capital charge, Kee can be sentenced to death.

Handed over to CNB on Sep. 19

The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) said Kee's alleged involvement in drug trafficking was revealed in investigations into two other drug trafficking cases in December 2020 and November 2022.

He allegedly supplied drugs to associates in Singapore, to be subsequently sold and trafficked in the country.

Authorities issued an arrest warrant against the 31-year-old man, but immigration records revealed that he had fled Singapore on Apr. 11, 2016.

He was later arrested in Thailand after CNB contacted its foreign counterparts, before being deported to Singapore and handed over to CNB on Sep. 19.

If found guilty of trafficking more than 250g of drugs, Kee can be sentenced to death.

Kee was ordered by the Singaporean court to be remanded for a week to allow investigators to conduct scene visits, trace his accomplices, and establish the source of the drugs, The Straits Times reported.

He will return to court on Sep. 26, CNA reported.

Anyone found drug trafficking may receive the death penalty

Under the Misuse of Drugs Act (MDA), a person in possession of a given amount of drugs exceeding certain stipulated amounts is presumed to be possessing them for the purpose of trafficking.

A Singaporean ex-property agent, Seet Poh Jing was sentenced to death on Apr. 2 this year for trafficking cannabis, where he was found possessing 4.5kg of the drug.

A 31-year-old Singaporean man, who is an alleged drug syndicate mastermind in Johor, was recently arrested along with his 38-year-old Malaysian girlfriend on Aug. 17 for possessing more than RM2 million (S$603,332) of drugs.

Top photos via Khaosod English & Central Narcotics Bureau