StanChart bank robbery suspect detained in UK; S’pore seeking extradition

SINGAPORE – David James Roach, the Canadian suspected of robbing the Holland Village branch of the Standard Charted Bank in July 2016, has been detained in the United Kingdom and could be extradited to the Republic.

"We are working with the UK authorities to commence the extradition proceedings," the Attorney-General's Chambers (AGC) and the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said in a joint statement on Monday (Jan 15).

According to the statement, Roach was deported to the UK from Thailand on Jan 11 after serving a 14-month jail term for criminal offences committed in the South-east Asian country. Earlier media reports said Roach was jailed for carrying over US$20,000 (S$26,455), said to be the loot from the bank robbery, when he entered Thailand.

"We sought the assistance of the UK authorities to arrest Roach, with a view to his eventual extradition to Singapore," the statement from the Singapore authorities added.

Roach is the main suspect in the bank robbery. He allegedly strolled into the StandChart bank branch in July 2016, handed the teller a scrap of paper, and walked off with the cash.

The 28-year-old then fled to Bangkok where he was arrested a few days later in a hostel, for violating money laundering and customs laws for smuggling the money into the country.

Since Roach's arrest by the Thai authorities in July 2016, Singapore has been in regular contact with the Thai authorities to secure his return to the Republic, said the AGC-MHA joint-statement.

Singapore and Thailand do not have an extradition treaty but share close diplomatic ties.