6 SAF servicemen fined over death of NSF in 2018

Six Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) servicemen have been fined over the death of a full-time national serviceman who died of heatstroke in 2018.

They were fined between $1,800 and $4,500, and three were also demoted, the Ministry of Defence said yesterday.

Corporal First Class (CFC) Dave Lee Han Xuan, 19, died on April 30, 2018, nearly two weeks after he was warded for heatstroke following an 8km fast march at Bedok Camp on April 18.

The police had referred the six men - two regulars and four operationally ready national servicemen (NSmen) - to Mindef for investigation into potential breaches of military law.

They were charged in military court on Feb 20 this year after the SAF's Special Investigation Branch completed its investigations. All six pleaded guilty.

Second Sergeant Koh Ren Zhong, a regular who was the safety officer for the fast march, was fined $1,800 over one charge of negligent performance of a lawful duty.

Corporal (NS) Tan Jin Yang, an NSman and the medic for the fast march, was convicted of two charges of negligent acts endangering life and was fined $4,500.

First Sergeant Chia Zhi Xuan was fined $2,500 for one charge of disobedience of general orders.

The regular serviceman was the conducting officer for a training run held a day before the fast march and had made unauthorised deviations to the run's lesson plans.

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The last three, Corporals (NS) Chng Pheng Heng, Jonas Ang Kai Jie and Yep Ren Jie were each convicted of one charge of disobedience of general orders and one charge of abuse of authority. The three NSmen section commanders had meted out unauthorised punishment the day before the fast march.

They were each fined $2,500 and demoted from the rank of third sergeant (NS) to corporal.

The seventh serviceman, Captain Tan Baoshu, who was the supervising officer of the fast march, was charged in the State Courts on Oct 31, 2018, with causing the death of CFC Lee by a rash act.

He claimed trial but was granted a discharge not amounting to an acquittal on Jan 8 this year after he was diagnosed with stage four cancer. He died on Feb 13.

Mindef also said that since the incident in 2018, the SAF has introduced enhancements to existing heat injury management and prevention measures to strengthen the SAF's protocols.

These include implementing a simplified evacuation protocol, improving heat injury awareness for commanders and medics, enhancing existing cooling and heat injury prevention measures, and strengthening an open reporting culture.

Mindef added that over the past two years, the SAF has seen a 40 per cent decline in the number of heat injury cases, and there have been no cases of heatstroke.