S'pore authorities nab man who took drugs with ex-lawyer before his death

A man who said he had consumed drugs with Singaporean activist and former lawyer M Ravi hours before the latter was pronounced dead has been arrested by the Central Narcotics Bureau, according to Channel News Asia.

CNA quoted Singapore’s police as saying that the island republic’s Civil Defence Force was alerted to an urgent case at an apartment at about 5.40am on Wednesday.

Paramedics attended to Ravi, 56, who was found unconscious and taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

According to the report, another individual identified as “A” was present in the apartment and told officers that he and Ravi had taken drugs a few hours earlier.

CNA reported that police also said “A” revealed Ravi began showing concerning symptoms after taking the drugs, and that he had performed CPR. He also claimed the drugs belonged to him.

The police yesterday launched a probe into Ravi’s “unnatural death”, while the cause of death will be determined following a post-mortem.

Ravi had represented Malaysians on Singaporean death row for drug trafficking, including K Datchinamurthy, 39.

Datchinamurthy was executed on Sept 25 for smuggling 44.96g of diamorphine into the republic.

Ravi had won international acclaim in 2023, picking up the award for “outstanding contribution by a legal practitioner to human rights” from the International Bar Association.

Ravi, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2006, was, however, struck off the rolls in 2024 for improper conduct.

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