Bye to past after being on the run and serving time

John, who is now in his mid-60s, vowed not to return to his past as a gangster after he was released from prison in 2015. PHOTO: ST READER

He left Singapore in the mid-1990s when he was put on the police gazette over drug-related offences.

Then a wanted man here, John (not his real name) moved to Europe and was recruited as a runner for the late fugitive Roland Tan Tong Meng, a founding member of the Dutch drug syndicate Ah Kong.

Tan, a Singaporean drug baron who ran a large drug syndicate out of Europe, died in April last year of a heart attack. He was a wanted man here for about five decades.

John was arrested in a police ambush in Bukit Panjang after returning to Singapore illegally in 2008. He was imprisoned for more than seven years.

Now in his mid-60s, John said he returned because he was tired and fearful of life as a gangster.

"In my small group of 10 men, three were shot dead during drug transactions (in Europe)," said John, who requested to remain anonymous for fear of "unfinished business" with past associates.

The gang he was with, one of many which cooperated with Tan's drug syndicate, was responsible for trafficking heroin from Asia to Europe.

John had been involved in illegal gambling and drug trafficking from the 1980s, then became a wanted man later.

He left for Indonesia, then Thailand, before ending up in Europe working for Tan and other drug syndicates.

After his release from prison in 2015, John vowed not to return to his past.

"I don't want my family to suffer any more because they had a hard life when I was a fugitive," said John, who spent a total of 15 years in prison, including for offences committed before fleeing Singapore in the 1990s.

"Those who plan to be a career gangster should know the law always catches up with you."

Zaihan Mohamed Yusof

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on January 18, 2021, with the headline Bye to past after being on the run and serving time. Subscribe