Singapore seeks FBI help over Shane Todd death
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Police in Singapore have asked the FBI to help with an inquiry into the death of a US engineer in the city-state.
Shane Todd's death, in June 2012, was registered as a suicide by hanging.
But his family say they believe foul play was involved, pointing to his work on a project they say is linked to China's Huawei Technologies - something Huawei denies.
Singapore police said they had asked Mr Todd's family to share any evidence in their possession related to his death.
"If (the Todd family) were not comfortable handing evidence in their possession to Singapore Police Force, they could seek the FBI's help to review the evidence," they said in an emailed statement.
"As there has so far been no response to this request, Singapore Police Force has sought the FBI's assistance to engage the family and for FBI to examine the evidence."
A US embassy spokesperson in Singapore, Eric Watnik, said on Monday that the FBI would comply with the request.
"The request is focused on issues entirely within the United States," he added. "The investigation into Shane's death continues to be led by the Singaporean police."
Work 'anxiety'
In a Financial Times report in February the parents of Mr Todd raised serious concerns about the circumstances surrounding his death.
They told the newspaper that what they found at their son's Singapore home did not match details in a police report related to his apparent suicide. They also said they did not believe he was the author of a suicide note shown to them by police.
They said that before he died Mr Todd had described himself as "anxious" about work, but that he had rejected a suggestion from his mother that he was depressed.
They said he expressed concern about a project he was working on for his employers, Institute of Microelectronics (IME) in Singapore, a unit under the state-owned Agency for Science, Technology and Research.
According to his parents, Shane Todd said he was being asked to do project work with a Chinese company that he feared harmed US national security, the FT reported.
Mr Todd's parents picked up an external hard drive at his home which, the FT said, contained copies of their son's computer files from IME including a planned project apparently involving Huawei and IME.
The files detail an amplifier device using gallium nitride (GaN), technology that has both commercial and potential military uses, according to the FT.
Last year, Huawei and ZTE, another Chinese telecommunications firm, were labelled potential national security threats by a US Congressional committee, which said they had failed to allay fears about their association with China's government and military.
The committee said the two firms should be excluded from government contracts and prevented from making acquisitions in the US.
Huawei spokesperson Scott Sykes said on Monday that "Huawei does not do military equipment or technology nor do we discuss it with partners".
"The development of GaN technology is commonplace across the entire telecommunications industry," he added.
IME managing director Raj Thampuran has told the Straits Times newspaper that "there were discussions but no project ensued between IME and Huawei on amplifiers".
"Notwithstanding the unfortunate consequences arising from the speculative media reports, central to this tragic incident is the demise of one of our own. We deeply grieve his loss and will for a long time to come," he added.
so similar to this lor http://sgforums.com/forums/3317/topics/363855
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the CIA must also be poking their nose this too
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I bet every intelligence agency is flying in as well.
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Murder or suicide?
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We will never know :lol:
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From the way i see it, it is murder. Anyone who wants to commit suicide doesn't need a pulley system at all. All they need is a chair, rope and a fan or something attached to the ceiling and hang from it with the help of the rope :lol:
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The more i read about this fella's death, the more it is death by murder This Shane fella is 6 feet, 200 pounds, that's a lot of strength Unless u drug him or snipe a headshot, it is very hard to kill him with physical force. There must be more than one murderer.
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Originally posted by Mr Milo:
The more i read about this fella’s death, the more it is death by murder
This Shane fella is 6 feet, 200 pounds, that’s a lot of strengthUnless u drug him or snipe a headshot, it is very hard to kill him with physical force. There must be more than one murderer.
maybe someone drugged him and injected him with milo.
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:lol::lol::lol:
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did they test the blood ph level?
one of the easiest way to kill a person is to inject anything not withtin their ph level.
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Did they say he died of poisoning?
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Originally posted by Mr Milo:
Did they say he died of poisoning?
nah, i wonder if they had measured the ph level of the blood.
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No idea though. It will be ages b4 anything is made public
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US govt welcomes public inquiry into Shane Todd's case
WASHINGTON: Singapore's Foreign Minister K. Shanmugam has held meetings in Washington with United States' new Secretary of State John Kerry and the country's Attorney General Eric Holder.
Mr Shanmugam said the US government has welcomed Singapore's decision to launch a public inquiry into the American engineer Shane Todd's death and to invite US officials to audit the work of his employer - Singapore's Institute of Microelectronics. The institute was undertaking for Chinese technology giant Huawei at the time of Todd's death.
Shane Todd's body was found in his Singapore apartment last June and the story was making headlines in the US on Wednesday.
"Our position is loud, it's clear, it's set out, and I think that has been appreciated," said Mr Shanmugam.
"We know what our processes and procedures are for investigations. We are comfortable with them. They will stand up to scrutiny. The relationship between the US and Singapore is very multi-faceted. It is deep, it spans many different fields, security, economic, and also on many issues we exchange views and I believe that the fundamental logic of the relationship is an extremely strong one," he added.
The US government has yet to take a position on demands by Shane Todd's parents. The demands for FBI oversight of the Singapore police inquiry into the American's death were echoed on Tuesday by their US Senator, Max Baucus.
It would be highly unusual for any country to offer the FBI that kind of role in an investigation.
Singaporean officials are hoping they have done enough here to alleviate US concerns over the Shane Todd issue and allow the bilateral relationship to focus once again on the regional issues that more usually dominate it.
- CNA/fa -
MFA disappointed at US "pressure" tactics over investigations into Shane Todd's death
SINGAPORE: Singapore's Foreign Affairs Ministry has said that the issue of applying "pressure" should not arise between countries which have a "long, open and cooperative relationship with each other, based on mutual respect".
It was responding to the latest move by two US Senators to block American funding to Singapore's Institute of Microelectronics (IME).
US Senators Max Baucus' and Jon Tester have introduced an amendment to block the funding, until the US Attorney General certifies that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has full access to all evidence and records relevant to the death of American Shane Todd.
The Foreign Affairs Ministry said it's "deeply disappointed by the Senators' actions and statements".
It said the Senators had requested the FBI to be given "full access" to all the evidence in the investigation conducted by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) over the case, based on "the version of the facts provided by the family alone".
The ministry added the police here have so far refrained from publicising the information gathered because investigations are ongoing.
It reiterated that there will be a public Coroner's Inquiry where all the facts will be laid out to determine the cause of Mr Todd's death.
The ministry said Singapore has made every effort to be open and transparent in both its investigation and the over projects handled by the Institute of Microelectronics.
At a recent meeting between Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K Shanmugam, with Senator Baucus (in Washington DC on 12 March 2013), Mr Shanmugam had said that the Singapore police is prepared to share relevant evidence with the FBI "in accordance with the legal framework of both countries".
"The Minister reiterated this at a press conference after the meeting. The SPF has also publicly committed to take into account any information and evidence that the FBI may independently gather. The SPF will ensure that all information is comprehensively examined and scrutinized during its investigation, and have done so through foreign experts and in this case, the FBI. The SPF will continue to work with the FBI to engage the Todd family to get their co-operation and assistance for the on-going investigation," said the MFA spokesperson.
Mr Shanmugam also pointed out that IME was subject to rigorous internal audits.
The Institute of Microelectronics is also prepared to have a team from the US to conduct a process audit here.
The ministry said it will let the outcome of the investigation and Coroner's Inquiry speak for themselves.
31-year-old Shane Todd was found hanged in his Singapore apartment in what appeared to be suicide, last June.
His parents, however, believe he was murdered.
- CNA/ck -
Will this be made into a movie?
unless there is medical record or evidence that he was suffering from any kind of depression or anxiety, the police should not dismiss the possibility of foul play.
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CSI: Singapore
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Shane Todd's family to attend inquiry, hires lawyer
SINGAPORE: The family of late US engineer Shane Todd will attend next month’s inquiry into his death, and has engaged a lawyer in Singapore to represent them.
Lawyer Gloria James-Civetta, who manages law firm Gloria James-Civetta & Co, said she received an email on April 1 from Todd’s father, Mr Rick Todd, requesting for her assistance. She has offered to act for the family on a pro-bono basis even though they were willing to pay her. “The family has had a very tough (time),” she said.
Ms James-Civetta said the family has indicated that they will be present during the inquiry. Nevertheless, she has asked them to come to Singapore a week before the inquiry starts on May 13 to go through some documents.
Todd was found hanged in his apartment last June in an apparent suicide. His family, however, believe that the 31-year-old was murdered over research he had done — possibly involving technology transfers to China — while working for the Institute of Microelectronics (IME) here.
Todd’s death had made the news in international media and his family had sought the help of US senators, who subsequently tried to block US funding to IME.
-TODAY/jc
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c ang moh die oni all fly in to investigek and pressure us
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relli got 疑点
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gotch simi 点??
一点 or 两点???
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Let the FBI Fringe division fly in!
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:lol: 3 dian :lol: