S'pore prison officer, 39, admits to accepting S$3,700 bribes from inmate to bring in nude photos & drugs

A 39-year-old former prison officer has pleaded guilty on Sep. 5 to five counts of corruption for accepting a total of S$3,700 in bribes from a Changi Prison inmate.

Mohammad Asri Bin Abd Rahim had received cash payments from Mohamad Yusof Bin Kasim, 50, on multiple occasions between 2021 and 2022.

He had done so in exchange for smuggling prohibited items such as nude photos and prescription drugs.

Started smuggling painkillers to "reward" attendants

Asri, who joined the Singapore Prison Service in 2012, was in charge of managing inmates with the help of attendants. These attendants are inmates who were given housekeeping duties, and Yusof is one of them.

According to CNA, Asri began sneaking in small amounts of gabapentin, a prescription painkiller, to hand out as "rewards" for the attendants in early 2021.

He did this once or twice a month without payment.

By August 2021, Yusof suggested that Asri could bring in other contraband items and get paid for doing so.

Asri hesitated at first as he knew it was illegal, but he eventually agreed.

Yusof coordinated the deliveries using code words in his e-letters. For example, "ayam", which means "chicken" in Malay, referred to Asri.

Through the e-letters, friends and contacts outside passed cash, pills and obscene photos to Asri on Yusof's behalf.

To get past security, Asri repacked the pills and photos into ziplock bags and hid them in his socks, underwear and work uniform.

According to court documents, he had pocketed amounts ranging from S$300 to S$2,000 at a time.

In June 2022, Asri tried to back out of the arrangement but before it ended, other officers raided Yusof's cell and found contraband pills tracing back to Asri.

Five charges of corruption

Asri was charged with five counts of corruption on Jul. 25, 2025.

He pleaded guilty to accepting S$500 in August 2021, at least S$300 in October 2021, S$500 in early 2022, S$400 in June 2022, and S$2,000 on at least three occasions between January and February 2022.

Yusof also pleaded guilty on Sep. 5 to bribing Asri.

Two other inmates also helped Yusof move bribes and contraband.

One of them, Murali Vigneshwaran, 36, has already pleaded guilty while Wilson Ang, 37, still faces proceedings.

If convicted, Asri faces a penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment, a fine of up to S$100,000, or both on each charge.

Those who offer bribes face the same penalties.

Asri, Yusof and Murali will be sentenced on Oct. 9, reported CNA.

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