Last man in Little India riot found guilty

The last of 25 men to be dealt with for their roles in a riot in Little India more than a year ago was found guilty in court yesterday.

Arun Kaliamurthy, an Indian national who has a master's degree in information systems and was looking for a job here, had claimed trial to a single charge of failing to disperse from the scene despite police orders to do so.

The 29-year-old will be sentenced by District Judge Shaiffudin Saruwan on June 2.

Twenty-five Indian nationals were initially charged with rioting.

Some, including Arun, had their charges amended to failure to disperse and obstruction.

All the others have been convicted and sentenced to jail, some with caning.

Arun is one of only two men to claim trial.

The fracas on the night of Dec 8, 2013, had erupted after a bus accident at Race Course Road killed 33-year-old construction worker Sakthivel Kumaravelu.

By the end of the night, 24 emergency vehicles had been damaged or set on fire and 43 enforcement officers injured.

It was the first large-scale riot here in over four decades.

In its closing submissions, the prosecution noted that while Arun initially claimed he did not hear police commands clearly, he admitted during the three-day trial that he heard the words "Disperse immediately!" from a Police Tactical Vehicle at Race Course Road.

He also had "ample opportunity to leave the scene" between 10.42pm and 11.10pm, but chose not to do so, Deputy Public Prosecutor Sellakumaran and Assistant Public Prosecutor (APP) Dillon Kok told the court.

In his mitigation, Arun's lawyer Shashi Nathan said his client was "merely an innocent bystander" in the riot.

The harm caused by Arun's conduct was "slight", and he has also been unable to work since his arrest, Mr Nathan added.

The defence lawyer urged the court to impose a fine, or a one-day jail term.

But APP Kok noted the "immense public disquiet" caused by the scale of the riot, and called for a deterrent sentence of at least 16 to 18 weeks' jail.

Arun faces up to two years in jail, or a fine, or both. - The Straits Times

What happened to the other 24 men

Twenty-four other Indian nationals were earlier jailed between 15 weeks and 33 months for their involvement in the 2013 Little India riot.

The men were found guilty of these offences:
Rioting
Causing mischief by fire Knowingly joining or continuing in an assembly of five or more people after it had been commanded to disperse
Being a member of an unlawful assembly
Obstructing a public servant who was suppressing a riot

Some of them were found guilty of a combination of the above charges.

The shorter jail sentences went to the ones who were knowingly joining or continuing in an assembly of five or more people after it had been commanded to disperse.

The longer sentences went to those who were found guilty of rioting and mischief by fire.

Those convicted of rioting were also ordered to receive three strokes of the cane each.

This article was first published on May 29, 2015.
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