SINGAPORE, May 31 — A 20-year-old full-time national serviceman attached to the police’s Special Operations Command (SOC) unit let two of his fellow gang members stay in his brother’s flat last March, despite knowing they had just participated in a murder.

When Mohd Firdaus Abdullah was arrested for that and later released on bail, he proceeded to desert his post as an operator in the SOC’s operations room.

He was absent without official leave (AWOL) for almost five months before being arrested in August for consuming and trafficking methamphetamine.

Firdaus, who held the rank of special constable, had earlier pleaded guilty to five charges of harbouring an offender, desertion, possession of drugs for the purpose of trafficking, consumption of drugs, and possession of drugs.

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Yesterday, he was convicted and sentenced to six years and two months’ behind bars, as well as five strokes of the cane.

Another 13 charges — including for theft, harassment and using criminal force — were taken into consideration for sentencing.

Firdaus is the second of five men belonging to the Sio Kun Tong secret society to be dealt with in relation to an alleged murder that took place at St James Power Station last year.

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In January this year, Muhammad Hisham Hassan, 27, was jailed for 18 months for harbouring another fellow gang member, 22-year-old Muhammad Khalid Kamarudin.

Khalid, Muhammad Faizal Md Jamal, 23, and Shawalludin Sa’adon, 27, were purportedly involved in an attack that led to the death of Sateesh Kumar Manogaran, 35.

Cases against them are still pending.

The court previously heard that last year’s March 12 dispute that led to Sateesh’s death arose from a trivial argument at Postbar at St James Power Station.

Yesterday, the court was told that Hisham, Khalid, Faizal and Shawalludin were involved in the early morning attack on Sateesh and his 29-year-old cousin, Naveen Lal Pillar.

Sateesh succumbed to his stab wounds in hospital, while Mr Naveen suffered a stab wound in the back of his head.

After the attack, Khalid and Faizal fled in a taxi. Khalid called Firdaus and told him the two of them had stabbed someone and needed shelter.

Firdaus told the pair to meet him at Aljunied Crescent.

When they got there, Firdaus passed Khalid — who had injured himself with his foldable knife — a towel to wrap his wound with, and led them to his brother’s flat.

The NSF then gave Khalid a bandage to dress his wound and a fresh shirt to change into. After Khalid got rid of his bloodstained shirt and knife, he joined Firdaus and Faizal at the common corridor outside the flat. They began drinking beer and chatted for about an hour.

A few hours later, at about 10am, Firdaus called Hisham to ask him what had happened. Hisham told them to head to his godmother’s flat at Yishun.

There, Khalid told Hisham he had stabbed two people. Hisham said someone had died and that it was murder.

After Faizal left the Yishun flat an hour or two later, Firdaus, Khalid and Hisham continued discussing the murder and kept themselves updated through the news. They also played board games and watched television.

Hisham left briefly for work at a Pastamania outlet, where he was an assistant manager, but quickly returned when he spotted two police officers at his workplace.

At some point, Hisham’s godsister became uncomfortable with their presence and asked if they could leave. They did not do so even though he assured her they would leave after dinner.

The police then raided the flat at 8.05pm the day after the fatal attack and arrested the three men.

Firdaus was subsequently released on bail. He reported for work at the SOC on March 24, but failed to show up five days later despite having been notified to report there.

He ended up absconding for 141 days, till he was arrested on Aug 16, 2017 at about 6.20am at Woodlands Avenue 5. Police officers found several packets of drugs on him.

He admitted that he had begun consuming methamphetamine in mid-February, and that he had been working with another man to sell the drugs since July.

He also admitted that he intended to remain AWOL permanently, as he considered his NSF pay to be too low.

Deputy Public Prosecutors Andre Chong and Kelly Ho sought six years and eight months’ imprisonment and five strokes of the cane for Firdaus.

For harbouring an offender, he could have been jailed up to 10 years and fined.

For desertion by a special police officer, he could have been jailed up to 10 years and fined up to S$5,000 (RM14,865).

For drug trafficking, he could have been jailed between five and 20 years, and given between five and 15 strokes of the cane. For both consuming and possessing methamphetamine, he could have received up to 10 years’ jail and a S$20,000 fine for each charge. — TODAY