Omar Bin Yacob Bamadhaj v PUBLIC PROSECUTOR

[2026] SGCA 18 Court of Appeal 15 April 2026 • CA/CM 10/2026 • 22 min read
10 cases cited

Catchwords

Practice Areas

Judges (1)

Parties (2)

Case Significance

Omar bin Yacob Bamadhaj v Public Prosecutor [2026] SGCA 18 is a Court of Appeal judgment in which See Kee Oon JAD, sitting as a single judge, summarily refused an application filed on 9 April 2026 by a prisoner awaiting capital punishment to seek permission to reopen his earlier Court of Appeal conviction in CA/CCA 9/2021. Omar bin Yacob Bamadhaj had been convicted on 24 February 2021 of a charge under s 7 of the Misuse of Drugs Act following a trial and was sentenced to capital punishment; his execution was scheduled for 16 April 2026. See Kee Oon JAD refused permission under s 394H of the Criminal Procedure Code 2010 without setting the application down for a hearing, delivering the judgment on 15 April 2026.

Summary

Omar bin Yacob Bamadhaj, a prisoner sentenced to death for importing not less than 1009.1g of cannabis under s 7 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, applied under s 394H of the Criminal Procedure Code 2010 for permission to reopen his appeal, with his execution scheduled for 16 April 2026. The single Judge summarily refused the application under s 394H(7), finding no sufficient basis to grant permission for a review, and declined to stay the execution.

What happened in Omar bin Yacob Bamadhaj's last-minute application to the Court of Appeal before his execution?

On 13 April 2026, Omar bin Yacob Bamadhaj — convicted under s 7 of the Misuse of Drugs Act and scheduled for execution on 16 April 2026 — applied under s 394H of the Criminal Procedure Code to reopen his appeal. See Kee Oon JAD summarily refused the application on 15 April 2026 without a hearing.

Statutes Cited

Cases Cited (10)

SG (3)
[2021] SGHC 46 [2023] SGCA 13 [2026] SGCA 5
SLR (7)
[2020] 2 SLR 1175 [2021] 1 SLR 159 [2021] 2 SLR 860 [2021] 5 SLR 927 [2022] 2 SLR 507 [2024] 1 SLR 1127 [2025] 1 SLR 554

Judgment

Read the full judgment on the official Singapore Courts portal.

Read on eLitigation

Source: eLitigation ([2026] SGCA 18)