Stanchart robber may not be extradited to Singapore but go to Canada instead

A Canadian suspected of robbing a Singapore bank of S$30,000 will be sent abroad, Thailand’s police chief said on Wednesday, but he did not say whether he would be sent to Singapore or Canada. Thai Police Commissioner General Jakthip Chaijinda told reporters in Bangkok that “Singapore is in the middle of asking for this suspect back but the decision rests with the courts.”

The Police in their earlier statement on the case said that “the Singapore authorities are currently engaging our counterparts in Thailand to see whether the suspect can be released into our custody.”

It is unclear though if the suspect who has been identified as David James Roach will be released to the authorities in Singapore to face the music for his crime. Singapore does not have an extradition treaty with Thailand. It is unclear why Singapore being an ASEAN country does not have such a treaty with Thailand. Currently, the following countries have extradition treaties with Thailand: the US, the UK, Canada, China, Belgium, Philippines, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, South Korea, Bangladesh, Fiji, and Australia.

Thailand’s head of immigration, Police Lieutenant General Nattorn Prohsunthorn said that the Thai police did not technically arrest Roach; they merely cancelled his right to stay in Thailand. They are therefore not able to keep him for very long, he said.

“We tried to interrogate David but he would not speak to us and asked to speak to his embassy,” said Nattorn.

“Yesterday the Canadian embassy came to see him. We think the Canadians would like to send him back to Canada but first we need to follow Thai legal procedure,” he added.