Woman's suicide possibly triggered by lawsuits from man linked to anti-vax group, coroner told

A woman who died by suicide was likely triggered by lawsuits filed against her and mounting legal fees, a coroner’s court heard on Nov 7.

Ms Geno Ong Kay Yong, 46, who died on Sept 6, 2024, was found with two suicide notes. One of them blamed her death on Mr Raymond Ng, who is associated with anti-vaccine group Healing the Divide.

Taken through his report by Deputy Senior State Counsel Teo Lu Jia in court on Nov 7, the senior investigation officer in charge of the case, Inspector Jeremy Kuan, said Ms Ong had also scheduled a Facebook post on the day of her death detailing some of the reasons for taking her own life.

In it, she cited two lawsuits initiated against her by one “RN of Healing the Divide”, later established to be referring to Mr Ng.

She said the suits caused her to incur costs, with Mr Ng promising more lawsuits.

Insp Kuan said Ms Ong formed the view that Mr Ng and “IK”, later established to be referring to Iris Koh, who is Mr Ng’s wife, were targeting innocent, average Singaporeans who would be easily threatened and intimidated by suing them so they could get money.

Ms Ong added that she could not afford the lawsuits and experienced health problems such as hair loss, nervous tics, blurred vision, failing memory and numbness in her limbs. But because of her legal woes, she could not afford to see a doctor, she said.

According to Insp Kuan, Mr Ng initiated a total of four court proceedings against Ms Ong from August 2021 till her death, including two for defamation and one for harassment.

He filed a defamation suit against her on Aug 24, 2021, claiming that she said in Facebook posts in January 2019 that he had engaged in fraudulent business.

While this case was ongoing, he applied for an expedited protection order against Ms Ong, claiming that she was harassing him.

This application was later withdrawn.

He filed a second defamation suit against her on June 24, 2024, over Ms Ong’s claims about him scamming multiple victims.

For both the defamation suits, Mr Ng sought six-figure amounts as compensation.

He declined an offer for mediation, claiming that Ms Ong had been incorrigible and continued to attack him on a daily basis.

Insp Kuan said Mr Ng did not substantiate his claims on the frequency of the attacks.

Replying to a question from State Coroner Adam Nakhoda, Insp Kuan said his investigations showed that Ms Ong’s total legal fees were between $55,000 and $65,000.

The coroner is slated to give his findings on Dec 12.

Separately, Koh, who is the founder of Healing the Divide, faces 14 charges for offences such as criminal conspiracy and harassment.

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Her trial and that involving suspended doctor Jipson Quah will start on Dec 16.

Several of Koh’s charges relate to alleged false representations made to the Ministry of Health involving Covid-19 vaccination certificates.

She is accused of committing the offences with Quah and seven others on seven occasions between 2021 and 2022.

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.