Court dismisses appeal by man detained at prison medical centre
Over two hearings before the court of three judges on Jan 19 and yesterday, Wong Kwok Wah clarified that he wanted to be sent back to the Institute of Mental Health (IMH). TODAY file photo
SINGAPORE — The highest court of the land yesterday dismissed an appeal from a 52-year-old man who had been acquitted of murder on the grounds of unsoundness of mind more than two decades ago, but then detained at the President’s pleasure because of his mental condition.
Wong Kwok Wah was held in custody in Woodbridge Hospital from 1991 — the year he was tried for murdering his 62-year-old neighbour — to 2001.
He was then moved to the Changi Prison hospital and later confined in the prison’s Complex Medical Centre (CMC) in 2005, following the hospital’s closure, where he has been held since.
According to the Criminal Procedure Code, the court can order a person to be kept in safe custody in a place and manner as it thinks fit, if it finds that a person’s actions would have amounted to an offence if not for his incapacity, as in Wong’s case.
At the close of the trial in April 1991, the court found that Wong — then 37 and diagnosed with schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder — had committed the murder, but acquitted him because of his mental state.
He has been detained since.
Wong did not appeal the court’s decision until July 3 last year, when he filed a criminal motion for an extension of time to appeal.
Over two hearings before the court of three judges on Jan 19 and yesterday, Wong clarified that he wanted to be sent back to the Institute of Mental Health (IMH).
The prosecution argued that Wong’s “challenging behaviour”, particularly his antisocial personality disorder, warranted medical attention best administered by the CMC.
The abnormal behaviours he exhibits include banging cell doors persistently to see that his requests are acceded to, demonstrating cheerfulness in inappropriate circumstances, and being unusually verbose.
In a Jan 7 report by IMH consultant Dr Bharat Saluja tendered in court yesterday, Wong was found to be unaware of his mental illness.
If unsupervised, he is also likely to become non-compliant to medication and has a high risk of violence, according to Dr Bharat, who works in the IMH’s general and forensic psychiatry department.
Yesterday, Wong, who represented himself in the appeal, told the apex court that he had “suffered” from almost three decades of detention.
“I suffer ... How can you lock up a human being for 28 years ... It is outright inhuman,” he said.
However, the Court of Appeal — comprising Chief Justice (CJ) Sundaresh Menon, Justice Chao Hick Tin and Justice Tay Yong Kwang — found no basis for Wong to be released or sent back to the IMH.
Noting that several doctors have consistently established a need for Wong to be in the prison’s custody “in the interest of safety”, CJ Menon said: “We cannot help you ... Several doctors have said so, and we cannot question those doctors. We are satisfied that there is no irregularity in the (diagnoses).”
Under the law, the Law Minister can order for an individual, detained for unsoundness of mind, to be discharged if two medical officers certify that he can be released without the risk of injuring himself or another person.
