A 32-year-old male Malaysian national, Jabing Kho (“Jabing”), had his death sentence carried out on 20 May 2016 at Changi Prison Complex.
On 17 February 2008, Jabing, together with an accomplice, assaulted two construction workers. Jabing hit one of the construction workers repeatedly, on the head with a piece of wood. The construction worker suffered 14 fractures to the skull with severe haemorrhage in three areas. He died on 23 February 2008. Jabing was convicted of murder and sentenced to death on 30 July 2010.
Jabing had been accorded full due process under the law. The Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against conviction on 24 May 2011. After the amendments to the Penal Code for murder came into force on 1 January 2013, Jabing applied to be re-sentenced. On 14 August 2013, the High Court re-sentenced Jabing to life imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane. The Prosecution subsequently appealed this decision. On 14 January 2015, the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal and imposed the death penalty on Jabing.
Jabing subsequently applied to the Court of Appeal to review its earlier decision. On 5 April 2016, the Court of Appeal dismissed the application. On 18 May 2016, Jabing filed a criminal motion to the Court of Appeal for a stay of execution. On 19 May 2016, the Court of the Appeal dismissed the application. On the same day, Jabing filed another legal challenge and applied for a stay of execution of the sentence so that the legal challenge could be heard. The application for a stay was heard and dismissed by the High Court on the same day. Jabing further appealed against the High Court’s dismissal of the stay application. The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal on 20 May 2016, commenting that the arguments in the legal challenge were unmeritorious in any event. He was represented by counsel throughout the legal process.
The Court Of Appeal in their judgement last January said that Jabing had exhibited a blatant disregard for human life in the way he attacked the deceased. In dismissing the latest round of last-minute appeals, the Court of Appeal said that Jabing’s multiple court applications after the conclusion of his appeal were an abuse of court process. The Court of Appeal also said that “the court should not be seen as a device to undermine the legal process. We cannot allow applications made at the eleventh hour, one after another”. The Court of Appeal noted that it had said in its judgement in April this year that the case was to come to an end. “The legal system will fall into disrepute if we allow the system to be scuttled this way”.
Jabing has been given the opportunity to petition the President for clemency. He filed a clemency petition through his counsel on 5 December 2011 when his appeal was dismissed in May 2011. He subsequently filed a second petition through his counsel on 24 April 2015 after the Prosecution’s appeal during the re-sentencing process was allowed in January 2015. On 15 May 2015, Jabing submitted an addendum to the second petition through his counsel. On 27 May 2015, his family members also submitted another petition for clemency. The petitions have been duly considered and were turned down. Both Jabing and the petitioners were informed of the outcome.
Attached: Factsheet
Jabing Kho – Chronological List of Key Dates
|
Date |
Event |
|
17 February 2008 |
Jabing, together with an accomplice, assaulted two construction workers in order to rob them. In the course of the robbery, Jabing struck one of the construction workers a number of times on the head with a piece of wood. The construction worker suffered 14 fractures to the skull with severe haemorrhage in three areas. He succumbed to his injuries and died on 23February 2008. |
|
30 July 2010 |
Jabing was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. |
|
24 May 2011 |
The Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal against conviction. |
|
5 December 2011 |
Jabing submitted a clemency petition through his counsel. |
|
1 January 2013 |
Amendments to the Penal Code for murder came into force. Jabing subsequently applied to be re-sentenced. |
|
14 August 2013 |
High Court re-sentenced Jabing to life imprisonment and 24 strokes of the cane. The Prosecution subsequently appealed this decision. |
|
14 January 2015 |
The Court of Appeal allowed the Prosecution’s appeal and imposed the death penalty on Jabing. |
|
24 April 2015 |
Jabing submitted a second clemency petition through his counsel. |
|
15 May 2015 |
Jabing submitted an addendum to the second petition through his counsel. |
|
27 May 2015 |
His family members submitted a petition for clemency. |
|
19 October 2015 |
Clemency petitions rejected by the President. Both Jabing and petitioners were informed of the outcome. |
|
4 November 2015 |
Jabing applied to the Court of Appeal to review its earlier decision, before his scheduled execution on 6 Nov 2015. |
|
5 November 2015 |
Court of Appeal issued a stay of execution. |
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5 April 2016 |
Court of Appeal dismissed the application. Stay of execution was lifted. |
|
18 May 2016 |
Jabing filed a criminal motion to the Court of Appeal for a stay of execution. |
|
19 May 2016 |
Court of Appeal dismissed the application. Jabing then filed another legal application to challenge the constitutionality of the legislative amendments to the mandatory death penalty in the Penal Code and applied for a stay of execution of the death sentence so that the legal application could be heard. The High Court dismissed the application for a stay on the same day. Jabing subsequently appealed against the decision to dismiss the application for a stay. |
|
20 May 2016 |
Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. Judicial Execution of Jabing carried out. |
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
20 May 2016 @ 6:15 PM