Man gets 7 years' jail and caning for being part of gang that robbed moneychanger manager of S$624,000

SINGAPORE — A 36-year-old man was sentenced to seven years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane for robbing another man of more than S$600,000 worth of cash and then fleeing to Malaysia, where he stayed for eight years before getting caught. 

Sivaraam Monion pleaded guilty on Tuesday (Jan 3) to one charge of gang robbery. He was the last in a group of nine men involved in the crime to be sentenced.

WHAT HAPPENED 

The court heard that the victim was a 35-year-old manager of a moneychanging business known as "Golden V2" at the time. His father-in-law was the director of the company. 

TODAY is not publishing the names of the victim and his father-in-law following a request from the Attorney-General's Chambers. 

The company engages in the sale and exchange of Singapore and foreign currencies. It also deals with other foreign and domestic moneychanging businesses.

As part of its operations, the company employs couriers to deliver bundles of Singapore and foreign currencies in cash to its customers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 

The same couriers would also collect the cash from its customers in Kuala Lumpur and deliver them to the company in Singapore. 

The victim would usually take over custody of the money from the couriers after they returned to Singapore. 

If they arrived at night, the victim would temporarily store the cash at his flat or at his father-in-law's flat. 

Sometime in 2013, Monion borrowed RM$10,000 (S$3,019) from Tachana Moorthy Peromal, one of the men involved in the robbery. 

Although initially able to service the loan, he was unable to continue doing so eventually. Court documents did not state why this was the case.

In April 2014, Peromal and a man named Sivarugu Armugam planned to rob the cash transported by Golden V2's couriers. 

Peromal then approached Monion and asked him to join them, promising to waive the loan that Morion owed him if he agreed to do so. 

After Morion agreed, Peromal and another accomplice called Baskaran Balakrishnan recruited more accomplices who all agreed to be part of the plan. 

Those involved in the crime and their sentences are: 

• Ravi Sandhira Sagaran, 39: Seven years jail and 12 strokes of the cane 
• Vekneswaran Sekaran, 40: Seven years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane
• Baskaran Balakrishnan, 40: Seven years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane 
• Tachana Moorthy Peromal, 38: Nine years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane 
• Saravanak Kumar Karunanithy, 39: Seven years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane 
• Selvam Karupaya, 41: Five years and nine months' jail, 12 strokes of the cane 
• David Mark Mari, 44: Seven years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane 
• Annadurai Raman, 53: Seven years' jail and 12 strokes of the cane 

All of them are Malaysians, except Raman who is a Singapore permanent resident. 

Over the course of about two weeks in September 2014, Balakrishnan, Sekaran, Peromal and Mari entered Singapore on at least two occasions to meet Raman and plan the robbery. 

The plan was for Raman to act as a lookout for the victim's car along Bedok Reservoir Road near Eunos Link while five of them, including Monion, would carry out the robbery. 

Two other accomplices would wait in another vehicle at a nearby location to give instructions and co-ordinate with the other accomplices. 

On Nov 5, 2014, the victim left his home with his son, who was two years old at the time. 

He drove to the arrival hall of Changi Airport Terminal 2 to collect the cash from the company couriers.

It was stored in a luggage bag that contained a total value of S$624,036.41 of Singapore and several foreign currencies, as well as two Nokia phones. 

After picking up the luggage bag, as well as another one that was empty, the victim drove home.

At about 12.45am, Annadurai spotted the victim's car passing by his location at the junction of Geylang East Central and Geylang East Avenue 1. 

He notified the other accomplices and they started following the victim's car, tailing it in a car they had stolen, until the victim reached an open air car park. Court documents did not state the location of the car park. 

After the victim parked his car, Morion and Karunanithy approached the driver's side of the vehicle and pulled on the door handle.

Realising that it was locked, they hit the window repeatedly, causing it to shatter. 

One of them also threatened the victim, saying to him in Tamil, "You want me to kill your son?".

Eventually, one of the robbers reached into the car and unlocked the door while the other one dragged the victim out of the car.

All of this happened while his toddler son was seated in the front passenger seat of the car. 

The pair then unlocked the car boot and transferred the luggage bags to their car before driving away. 

All of the accomplices fled Singapore for Malaysia between 2.03am and 2.08am that day, court documents stated. 

'HARDLY A CASE SHOWING REMORSE'

Monion’s lawyer, Mr Muhammed Riyach Hussain Omar of H C Law Practice, sought a sentence of six years’ jail and 12 strokes of the cane, stating that his client’s role “was not as equal as the others”. 

He said that the other accused persons had a larger role in the crime since they had staked out the routes to devise the method of robbery. 

However, Deputy Public Prosecutor Sheldon Lim said that Monion was recruited fairly early and was also involved in planning the robbery. 

District Judge Luke Tan also disagreed with the defence counsel, saying that Monion's role in the crime was as significant as those of the other offenders. 

He was involved in much of the initial planning and was directly involved in the commission of the robbery.

“I see no reason or no basis whatsoever to impose a sentence lower than the sentence imposed for the bulk of his accomplices,” the judge added.

District Judge Tan also noted that the offence was committed in 2014 but Monion was arrested in Malaysia and only extradited in July last year, showing that this was “hardly a case of him showing remorse”.

In consideration of these factors, he agreed with the prosecution’s proposed sentence and meted out the punishment of seven years’ jail and 12 strokes of the cane. 

Anyone found guilty of gang robbery can be jailed up to 20 years and receive up to 12 strokes of the cane.