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SINGAPORE: The superintendent of the Whitley Road Detention Centre has been sacked over security lapses that led to the escape of Jemaah Islamiyah detainee Mas Selamat Kastari on February 27. His deputy has been demoted, with a corresponding pay cut.
The two were the most senior officers in charge of the ground management of the detention centre, and were among six Internal Security Department (ISD) officers charged over the escape.
Deputy Prime Minister and Home Affairs Minister Wong Kan Seng disclosed this when he updated Parliament on the disciplinary action taken after Mas Selamat's escape.
Mr Wong said: "These two officers have been held accountable for the lack of supervision over the subordinate officers implicated, which resulted in lapses that enabled Mas Selamat to escape from WRDC.
"The superintendent has also been held accountable for failing to take appropriate action on discovering that the ventilation window in the toilet at the Family Visitation Block was unsecured.
"He should have instructed the renovation contractor to install grilles on the ventilation window. It was a serious error on his part to saw off the handle of the window instead, in the mistaken belief that this was a sufficient security measure."
Two Gurkha officers were also charged and have been demoted after pleading guilty.
The Special Duty Operative handling the detainee's family visit when the incident happened has also been sacked.
She had not observed due procedures in the accurate registration of clothes belonging to the detainee and those issued by the detention centre. This allowed Mas Selamat to put on more than one layer of clothes during his escape.
Letters of warning were served to three others - the Special Duty Operative's supervisor, the Chief Warder as well as the Technical Officer responsible for the CCTV upgrading at the detention centre.
Responding to a question by MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC, Dr Lam Pin Min, Mr Wong said all the officers were given the opportunity to explain themselves before the Disciplinary Committee. They also have 30 days to appeal against the punishment meted out. So far, no one has done so.
The superintendent and his deputy have also been held accountable for the lack of supervision over the subordinate officers implicated in the escape.
Mr Wong said the ISD's command director (or officer-in-charge) whom the superintendent reported to, has also been relieved of his duties on April 24.
Although the command director was neither directly nor indirectly linked to the lapses of specific officers down the line - and he was not at fault over the lapses - Mr Wong said: "He has a statutory function to ensure the smooth functioning of the WRDC. So in terms of institutional responsibility, as far as that role is concerned, I decided that I should find another person to do the job."
The chapter on Mas Selamat, who is still at large, is far from over.
Mr Wong added: "We've received no information from our foreign intelligence partners in the region that Mas Selamat has appeared on their shores. We have no information specifically on where he could be.
"But we cannot work on the assumption that he is no longer in Singapore. Therefore, we have to work on the assumption that he is still in Singapore and all the necessary border security measures ought to be in place."
So security at all checkpoints will remain tight.
Mr Wong said the morale of the ISD has taken a beating over the incident. However, they will learn from this setback and stay focused on safeguarding Singapore. - CNA/ac/vm
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