Doc admits to switching blood sample with 
HIV-positive boyfriend, Latest Singapore News - The New Paper
Singapore

Doc admits to switching blood sample with 
HIV-positive boyfriend

This article is more than 12 months old

A district court heard yesterday that a Singaporean doctor admitted to a police officer last year that he had switched his blood sample with the one taken from his American boyfriend who is HIV-positive.

On the first day of Ler Teck Siang's trial, Deputy Superintendent Alvin Phua testified that Ler, the doctor, had told him at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters during an interview on May 23 last year that he had substituted Mikhy Farrera-Brochez's blood sample with his own.

The American, who worked as a polytechnic lecturer in Singapore, had committed offences including cheating, lying to a public servant, possessing drugs and using forged educational certificates.

The 32-year-old was jailed for 28 months on March 1.

Ler, 35, then wrote down his own statement for the police after the interview.

But yesterday, the accused told District Judge Luke Tan that he had given his written statement under duress.

DSP Phua, however, testified that he had made no threats, inducements or promises to Ler.

Ler is on trial for allegedly helping Farrera-Brochez cheat the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) when the American submitted the doctor's blood sample for tests instead of his own in March 2008 to obtain an employment pass.

Ler is said to have committed a similar offence in November 2013 by helping the American one more time to retain his employment pass.

Besides these two charges of cheating MOM, Ler is also accused of two counts of giving false information to public servants.

Ler and Farrera-Brochez had met online.

In 2008, Farrera-Brochez moved to Singapore, a year after he got into a relationship with the then-general practitioner.

According to an earlier news report, Ler, an infectious diseases specialist, worked as a medical officer at the Communicable Diseases Division of the Health Ministry from February 2012 to January 2014.

The trial resumes today.

If convicted of cheating, Ler can be jailed for up to 10 years and fined for each charge.

And if convicted of lying to a public servant, he can be jailed for up to a year and fined up to $5,000 for each charge.

 

COURT & CRIMEdoctorMINISTRY OF MANPOWER (MOM)