S'porean man, 40, charged with drug trafficking, found with 43 KPods at AMK car park, 1st such case in S'pore

A 40-year-old Singaporean man has become the first person in Singapore to face drug trafficking charges for allegedly trafficking pods containing etomidate.

According to charge sheets seen by Mothership, Singaporean Derek Khor Boon Chun allegedly committed the offence on Sep. 6, at about 4:40pm.

The location was indicated as a car park located at Block 631 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 4, which is part of the Yio Chu Kang View estate.

Khor was alleged to have possessed 43 pods that were found to contain etomidate for the purpose of trafficking.

Khor was charged on one count of drug trafficking under the Misuse of Drugs Act by an official from the Health Sciences Authority (HSA).

If found guilty, he can be sentenced to up to 10 years' jail and five strokes of the cane.

Khor is next set to appear in court on Sep. 15.

Stricter enforcement against vapes, etomidate

This comes a week after etomidate was classified as a Class C drug in the Misuse of Drugs Act, as part of stricter measures employed by the Singapore government in its crackdown on etomidate and vaping.

Individuals caught in possession of vapes, as well as offenders of etomidate abuse, will face stronger penalties from Sep. 1, including heftier maximum fines.

All etomidate offenders, regardless of age, will also receive mandatory supervision, including drug testing for 12 months under the MDA.

Previously, on Aug. 13, a 41-year-old Yishun resident was convicted of manufacturing and selling 100 Kpods (etomidate-laced vapes) from his home, in Singapore's first such conviction to date.

The man, Mohammed Akil Abdul Rahim, will be sentenced at a later date.

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Top image from HSA/Google Street View