Indian-origin man jailed in Singapore for posing as a prison officer

Singapore, Feb 16 (PTI) An Indian-origin man was sentenced to nine months' imprisonment by a Singapore court on Monday after he pleaded guilty to pretending to be a prison officer in an email sent to President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and the Secretariat of the Singapore Parliament.

Prakash Paramasivam, 25, had sent the mails to obtain help for his previous convictions, as he felt he was wrongly convicted, the prosecution said.

Without revealing details, the prosecutor added that between 2018 and 2023, Prakash had been in and out of jail for offences including criminal intimidation by anonymous communication.

Separately, Prakash pretended to be the prison officer in an email sent to Desmond Lee, then National Development Minister and current Education Minister, for help in some family matters, reported The Straits Times.

He has also been accused of making a fake medical certificate.  His offence came to light when police contacted the doctor, who said he had not issued the certificate.

Prakash was arrested on July 8, 2025, and has been in remand since.

Calling for strong deterrence, DPP Chua urged the court on Monday to sentence him to between seven and nine months in jail: “The accused has... shown himself to be a serial and habitual offender with a marked proclivity towards sending false messages to third parties.” PTI GS RD RD RD