Ex-NKF chairman Yong now on Home Detention
scheme
By Chong Chee Kin
OUT OF PRISON: Richard Yong is
now working at a Chinese restaurant in town and lives with his
sister. He is serving out the rest of his jail term from home, has
to wear an electronic tag and observe a curfew.
FORMER National Kidney Foundation (NKF) chairman Richard Yong Kun
Da, now serving a 15-month jail term, has been released from prison
and is on the Home Detention scheme.
This means he does not need to serve out his term in prison but
will wear an electronic tag and will have to observe a strict
curfew.
The Straits Times understands that he has been on this scheme since
Jan 10 this year, after doing time in prison for nearly five
months.
Yong is now working at a Chinese restaurant in town and is living
with his sister. Apart from wearing the tag, he must be home by 6
pm.
When contacted, a Prisons Department spokesman declined comment,
saying that it was inappropriate to divulge details of an
inmate.
Yong, 66, was jailed for 15 months last September for illegally
transferring nearly $4 million into his wife's overseas bank
account, and for two counts under the Bankruptcy Act.
The term was backdated to Aug 4 last year, the date when he was
first remanded following his extradition here from Hong Kong. He
had left Singapore barely hours after he was declared a bankrupt
without the approval of the Official Assignee, which administers
the affairs of bankrupts.
Lawyers who spoke to The Straits Times said they were not surprised
that Yong is now out of prison and dismissed any suggestion that he
was given preferential treatment.
Given his 15-month jail term, he could be out in 10 months for good
behaviour.
A criminal lawyer said: 'He would probably have to serve half of
that 10 months in prison before he could be released for home
detention, so he is eligible now.'
There are no 'hard and fast rules' and assessment is on a
case-by-case basis, he added.
Under the law, inmates face stringent conditions in order to
qualify for the scheme. For example, violent and sexual offenders
are ineligible.
Eligible inmates have to observe a strict curfew and are expected
to be home usually by 6pm to 8 pm, and are sometimes required to
report to prison authorities.
They also have to be employed and have family support so that they
can re-integrate into society.
Currently, an inmate has to be sentenced to four weeks'
imprisonment and above to be eligible. The maximum placement period
on the scheme is a year.
In addition, an inmate has to be assessed by the prison authorities
through a series of interviews to see his progress and response to
rehabilitation.
The scheme was introduced in 2000 as an avenue for early release of
prisoners found suitable for rehabilitation.
Copyright, 2008, Singapore Press Holdings Limited