AGC counsel fined $1,600 and given 1-year driving ban for drink-driving
A deputy senior state counsel was fined $1,600 and disqualified from driving for 12 months on Friday (10 August) for driving under the influence of alcohol.
Jeyendran Jeyapal, 39, who works in the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC) Civil Division, pleaded guilty to one charge of drink-driving.
According to court documents, Jeyendran was driving along 2nd Hospital Avenue towards Hospital Drive at about 4.50am on 11 February when he was stopped for a check by a traffic police officer.
Jeyendran failed a breathalyser test administered by the officer on the spot and was escorted to the Traffic Police Division (TPD) for further investigation.
The subsequent breath test administered at the TPD revealed that he had 48 microgrammes of alcohol in every 100 millilitres of breath, exceeding the prescribed legal limit of 35 microgrammes.
Jeyendran, who was unrepresented, later admitted that he had consumed a glass of alcoholic cocktail at a pub at about 4am, at the urging of a friend who bought the drink to thank him for celebrating his birthday.
As he did not want to disappoint his friend, he “reluctantly” consumed the drink, according to his mitigation plea read out by District Judge Victor Yeo Khee Eng.
In delivering his verdict, Judge Yeo said he considered the first-time offender’s plea of guilt and the lack of aggravating factors present in the case, noting that Jeyendran did not speed or cause any accident or damage to property.
In response to media queries, an AGC spokesperson said, “The AGC takes a serious view of offences committed by our officers and will not hesitate to take appropriate actions against them.”
“As the upholder of the rule of law, AGC expects our officers to uphold high standards of integrity and discipline,” the spokesperson added.
For drink-driving, Jeyendran could have been sentenced to a fine of $1,000 to $5,000 or jailed up to six months, and be disqualified from holding or obtaining a driving licence for no less than 12 months from the date of his conviction.
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