Execution of Two Convicted Drug Traffickers - 27 November 2025

1.               The capital sentences of death imposed on Mohammad Rizwan bin Akbar Husain (“Rizwan”) and Saminathan Selvaraju (“Saminathan”) were carried out on 27 November 2025.

2.               Rizwan and Saminathan were jointly tried with a third offender, Zulkarnain bin Kemat (“Zulkarnain”). Rizwan, a 44-year-old Singaporean, was convicted of abetment of trafficking, by instigating Zulkarnain to be in possession of not less than 301.6 grammes of diamorphine, or pure heroin, for the purpose of trafficking. Saminathan, a 42-year-old Malaysian, was convicted of trafficking the diamorphine by delivering it to Zulkarnain. The Misuse of Drugs Act provides for the death penalty if the amount of diamorphine trafficked is more than 15 grammes. 301.6 grammes of diamorphine is sufficient to feed the addiction of about 3590 abusers for a week.

3.               Rizwan and Saminathan were accorded full due process under the law, and were represented by legal counsel during the trial and appeal.

a.     They were convicted and sentenced to capital punishment on 12 March 2018.

b.     They appealed against their convictions and sentences. The Court of Appeal dismissed their appeals on 8 May 2020.

4.               Rizwan and Saminathan’s petitions to the President for clemency were unsuccessful.

5.               Some parties have questioned whether Saminathan was formally notified of his execution date. Prisoners Awaiting Capital Punishment (“PACPs”) are notified of their scheduled execution date by the Superintendent of the Institution in person. A letter is provided to the PACP's next of kin to convey the same information and also the visit arrangements and contact details of the prison officers to whom the family could reach out. In Saminathan's case, he was notified on 20 November 2025 of his scheduled execution date. Saminathan had stated this in his affidavit filed on 21 November 2025 for the purposes of his Post-Appeal Application in a Capital Case, CA/OAC 3/2025, for a stay of execution. The application was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on 26 November 2025.

 6.               Capital punishment is imposed only for the most serious crimes, such as the trafficking of significant quantities of drugs which cause very serious harm, not just to individual drug abusers, but also to their families and the wider society.

Central Narcotics Bureau
27 November 2025