S’pore has no jurisdiction over Audrey Fang case, can’t prosecute suspect if he’s deported: MHA

As the fatal stabbing of Singaporean Audrey Fang took place in Spain, Singapore has no jurisdiction over the alleged murder, and thus would not be able to investigate or prosecute Singaporean suspect Mitchell Ong if he were to be deported.

This follows the news on May 28 that an attempt to deport the 44-year-old by Spanish immigration authorities had been rejected by a Spanish court.

In response to queries, the Ministry of Home Affairs said on May 29 that it has communicated its position to its Spanish counterparts, and that the Singapore Government would assist them within the ambit of Singapore’s laws.

Law enforcement agencies there, meanwhile, have told the ministry that they are currently prosecuting Ong in Spain.

News of the deportation request being blocked was first reported by Spanish daily La Opinion de Murcia on May 28.

The deportation request was made by Spain’s General Commissariat for Aliens and Borders, a national police agency that manages immigration and border control matters, and was supported by the lawyer representing Ms Fang’s family.

However, a judge ruled that Ong did not meet the criteria outlined in Spain’s laws pertaining to the expulsion of foreigners, one of which states that immediate deportation can take place if an individual has been charged with a crime and is given a jail sentence of fewer than six years, or is given an alternate sentence, such as a fine.

As the minimum jail sentence for Ong’s potential murder charge is 15 years, the former insurance agent does not meet this criterion.

Ong’s lawyer, Ms Maria Jesus Ruiz de Castaneda, had told The Straits Times earlier in May that she is opposing the request.

The Spanish immigration authority had also requested that Ong be banned from returning to Spain for 10 years, if the deportation had gone through.

Ms Ruiz de Castaneda had earlier told Spanish media that an expulsion would be a violation of the rule of law and international treaties Spain has signed and ratified.

“He is involved in ongoing criminal proceedings in Spain, where he must be tried with due process,” she said. 

“Expulsion would be contrary to the European Convention on Human Rights, the principle of non-refoulement and Spain’s commitments against the death penalty.”

She had previously called for the case to be dismissed, saying that all necessary evidence had to be examined and that Ong “firmly and consistently” insisted he did not kill Ms Fang.

Ms Fang, a 39-year-old architect, was found dead near a parking space for lorries in the town of Abanilla on April 10, 2024.

She left Singapore on April 4 to travel alone to Xabia in the Valencia region of Spain, and was supposed to return eight days later, but became uncontactable on April 10.

Her body was found with knife wounds and head trauma. Ong was arrested six days later.

Testimonies from two of Ms Fang’s friends on June 26, 2024, said Ms Fang and Ong had met on a social dating network.

Her family’s lawyer said she had told her friends she was meeting Ong during her holiday in Spain.

In March, La Opinion reported that DNA from two men was found on her clothes, raising the possibility that more than one person was involved in her death.

Ong, meanwhile, was also found to have been nominated as the sole beneficiary of Ms Fang’s Central Provident Fund savings, with the accounts reportedly containing about $498,000.

Source: The Straits Times © SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.

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