East Coast Parkway murder

Kalingam's body was later found at the East Coast Parkway, and the two suspects – 22-year-old lorry driver Ramu Annadavascan and 16-year-old news vendor Rathakrishnan Ramasamy – were both charged with murder.

Eventually the trial court sentenced Ramu to death for murder while the other, Rathakrishnan, was imprisoned indefinitely under the President's Pleasure since he was still underaged when he killed Kalingam.

Selvarajoo told police that he last saw Kalingam at a coffee shop, drinking beer with three other young men, two of whom he identified as 16-year-old news vendor Rathakrishnan Ramasamy and 22-year-old lorry driver Ramu Annadavascan (alias Botak).

Rathakrishnan led the police to the site the next day, where the charred corpse of a man in a high state of decomposition was found, as well as an identity card belonging to Kalingam and a tin filled with leftover petrol.

[6][7][8][9] On 26 June 1984, both 24-year-old Ramu Annadavascan and 18-year-old Rathakrishnan Ramasamy stood trial at the High Court for the murder of 45-year-old Kalingam Mariappan.

Spencer Gwee was in charge of the prosecution's case, while both Ramu and Rathakrishnan were represented by Subhas Anandan and R Palakrishnan during the court proceedings.

[10][6] Professor Chao Tzee Cheng, the senior forensic pathologist, came to court to present his autopsy report on the victim's death.

He testified that there were three skull fractures on Kalingam's head, which were caused by an instrument with several sharp pointed prongs, like a gardening rake.

[18][19] Subsequently, both Rathakrishnan and Ramu argued that their statements were not made voluntarily and stated they were assaulted by officers who forced them to admit to the murder.

Ramu said they never expected that Kalingam would suddenly regain consciousness and rolled around on the ground in pain, and they had no choice but to leave him due to them unable to do anything to help him.

Justice Sinnathuray, who read out the judgement in court, stated that both judges were satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that both men were guilty of the "brutal and gruesome" murder of Kalingam and were also satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt that both defendants shared the common intention to cause grievous harm to the victim, such that the injury was sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death.

[1] In November 1986, it was revealed that Ramu, together with another prisoner Wong Foot Ling, offered to donate their kidneys and corneas for organ transplant patients before their sentences were carried out.

Wong, who was executed on the same day as Ramu, was found guilty and given the death penalty for the 1983 murder of his lover Khor Gek Hong.

[40] In the aftermath of his trial and appeal, Rathakrishnan Ramasamy was imprisoned at the President's Pleasure (TPP), with his sentence taking effect from the date of his arrest.

[1] In December 2001, Rathakrishnan was approached by a newspaper to speak about his life in prison while under TPP, with the paper changing his name to protect his identity.

Rathakrishnan revealed that after his arrival at Changi Prison, he spent his next twelve years living in a heavily guarded single cell due to his conviction for murder.

Rathakrishnan stated that even before his arrival, the inmates at Changi Prison were already aware of his offence and he described his first day there as a "frightening" experience as a result.

Palakrishnan also stated that as a result of these actions, the courts deemed that it did not show his client was truly fearful of Ramu Annadavascan and did the killing under duress, which was a legitimate finding made under the law.

Anandan admitted in his book that he had represented Ramu twice previously before his conviction for murdering Kalingam, and had helped him reduce charges to the lower ones and sought a fine for him.

Anandan revealed that a few years after Ramu was executed, he met a client who was charged with killing his friend in a fight over drugs.

By then, the TPP indefinite detention measure was abolished since 2010, allowing courts to impose life imprisonment for minors who commit murder or other capital crimes while below 18 years of age.