August 4 – Tan Seet Eng, otherwise known as Dan Tan, the suspected mastermind of football’s global match-fixing scourge, has failed yet again to win his case against detention in his native Singapore.
Tan, reported to be responsible for a string of cases that has netted millions of dollars, appeared in court to appeal against an earlier court decision which saw his application for an order to review his detention thrown out.
Tan was on almost every football crime-busting wanted list before being detained last year. He was one of 14 people arrested in a crackdown on match-fixing cartels in September 2013, and was subsequently detained under Singapore’s Criminal Law (Temporary Provisions) Act. This allows the Government to detain suspects indefinitely without trial, should this be in the interest of “public safety, peace and good order” though yearly reviews are required.
Tan’s lawyer Hamidul Haq told the court his client’s detention was “illegal”, and argued that match-fixing did not constitute activities that harmed public safety, peace and good order. He pointed out that the act was traditionally used as ammunition against communism and secret society and loansharking activities.
He also questioned whether Tan’s alleged activities had any impact “in and within” Singapore.
Addressing this, Deputy Public Prosecutor Hay Hung Chun said activities conducted overseas could be taken into account, provided that there was a link to Singapore. And in this case, Tan had operated the match-fixing syndicate from Singapore.
Calling successfully for the appeal to be dismissed, Hay added that match-fixing was a form of organised crime, and “activities of a criminal nature would pose a threat to public safety”.
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