Update 31 Jul 2014: Shane Todd's death: AGC denies towel and noose destroyed to block DNA test
Americans Mary and Rick Todd with a photo of their son Shane, who was found hanged in his Singapore home in June 2012. His parents, who arrived in Singapore in May last year for the coroner's inquiry, believe he was killed. -- PHOTO: THE NEW PAPER
The local authorities have rejected insinuations that two pieces of evidence related to US researcher Shane Todd's death were destroyed to prevent further DNA testing on them.
His parents believe he was murdered even though evidence presented during a 10-day inquiry last year proved he had hanged himself against a door with a noose and towel around his neck.
They told the media in the United States last week that they had wanted the two items for DNA testing. "We have ample evidence that our son was murdered, but the towel and the strap were the only DNA evidence in Shane's case, and now they have been destroyed," they reportedly said.
6 reasons it was suicide: State counsel
(From left) Chet, John and Dylan Todd, brothers of the late American researcher Shane Todd, at the Subordinate Court on 22 May 2013
State Counsel in the Shane Todd case Monday said medical forensic evidence and other facts "point strongly to Shane's death being a suicide, which took place at the bedroom of his apartment".
Dr Todd was found hanged in his Spottiswoode Park apartment on June 24 last year. His death is the subject of an ongoing coroner's inquiry, with the verdict scheduled for July 8
Senior State Counsel Tai Wei Shyong said in his closing submissions that the murder theory advanced by Dr Todd's family is "entirely misplaced and unfounded".
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US scientist's family says Singapore inquest 'a sham'
The family of an American scientist found hanged in Singapore last year dismissed on Tuesday the city-state's findings that he committed suicide as "a sham and a cover-up" for a murder
"I am not surprised by the state's findings because the state refused to consider murder, they only investigated suicide," Mary Todd, mother of the late electronics engineer Shane Todd, told AFP by email from the United States.
The Singapore government, summing up its position after two weeks of public hearings in May, on Monday rejected the family's conspiracy theory, saying Todd killed himself in June 2012 in his own apartment after a bout of depression.
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Shane Todd's death a suicide, State Counsel said in closing submission
In contrast, there was a "conspicuous absence of any evidence" that supported the theory that the ex-Singapore Institute of Microelectronics (IME) employee was murdered, despite his parents' allegations, said Senior State Counsel Tai Wei Shyong
Lawyers for the Singapore government told a coroner's inquest on Monday that an American scientist found hanged in the city-state last year killed himself and was not murdered as his family claims.
Summing up state agencies' findings on the death of electronics engineer Shane Todd in June 2012, they said "it is clear from the medical forensic evidence that the medical cause of Shane's death was asphyxia due to hanging."
The coroner's verdict, which cannot be appealed, is scheduled to be handed down on July 8. Public hearings on the case were held from May 13-27.
read more
related:
AFP - Singapore says US scientist hanged himself
GlobalPost - Singapore says US scientist hanged himself
Business Times - State: Evidence of suicide overwhelming
gulfnews.com - Singapore says US scientist hanged himself
Businessweek - Shane Todd Killed Himself, Singapore Tells Coroner's Inquest
Channel News Asia - "Conspicuous absence" of evidence to support theory that Shane Todd
Marion family seeks justice outside of Singapore court
A Marion family, who recently dropped their inquest request into the suspicious circumstances surrounding their son's death in Singapore, is now seeking justice for him outside the court room.
Tainted evidence, false testimonies, and a corrupt prosecution, they're all things Mary and Rick Todd say led to them walking out of a Singapore courtroom during the inquiry into their son's death.
"It was a kangaroo court, it was a sham, it was a joke," Shane's mom, Mary said. "It had a been a mom tortured for [10 days], sitting there day after day, hour after hour - listening to lie after lie and realizing that they do not care about the truth."
Related Articles
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[The email was sent by Mr Rick Todd to several recipients today (4 Jun). Among the recipients were TRE, an editor of Associated Press and a Legislative Director of a congressman, Mr Thomas Culligan. Mr Culligan is the Legislative Director of congressman Frank Wolf. Mr Wolf is a Republican first elected in 1980 and one of the House’s leading crusaders for human rights. He is also an influential appropriator as chairman of the Appropriations’ Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee.]
* Warning: Documents below contain graphic photos that some readers may find disturbing. However, in the interest of allowing the Todd family to convey their points, TRE is publishing the information submitted by Mr Rick Todd uncensored:
read more
Correction: Singapore-American’s Death story
In a May 27 story and headlines about a coroner’s inquest into the death of an American scientist, The Associated Press erroneously reported that police admitted violating or flouting official protocol in their investigation by not seeking fingerprints or DNA samples, and by examining the contents of a laptop computer in the dead man’s apartment. Rather than admitting to any incorrect behavior in testimony, a police investigator simply recounted his actions, which he described as permissible under the guidelines. Police deny that any protocol was violated or flouted while looking into the cause of death.
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AP report on Todd case 'mischievous'
(From left) Chet, John and Dylan Todd, brothers of the late American researcher Shane Todd, at the Subordinate Court on 22 May 2013
State Counsel in the Shane Todd case Monday said medical forensic evidence and other facts "point strongly to Shane's death being a suicide, which took place at the bedroom of his apartment".
Dr Todd was found hanged in his Spottiswoode Park apartment on June 24 last year. His death is the subject of an ongoing coroner's inquiry, with the verdict scheduled for July 8
Senior State Counsel Tai Wei Shyong said in his closing submissions that the murder theory advanced by Dr Todd's family is "entirely misplaced and unfounded".
read more
US scientist's family says Singapore inquest 'a sham'
The family of an American scientist found hanged in Singapore last year dismissed on Tuesday the city-state's findings that he committed suicide as "a sham and a cover-up" for a murder
"I am not surprised by the state's findings because the state refused to consider murder, they only investigated suicide," Mary Todd, mother of the late electronics engineer Shane Todd, told AFP by email from the United States.
The Singapore government, summing up its position after two weeks of public hearings in May, on Monday rejected the family's conspiracy theory, saying Todd killed himself in June 2012 in his own apartment after a bout of depression.
read more
Shane Todd's death a suicide, State Counsel said in closing submission
In contrast, there was a "conspicuous absence of any evidence" that supported the theory that the ex-Singapore Institute of Microelectronics (IME) employee was murdered, despite his parents' allegations, said Senior State Counsel Tai Wei Shyong
Lawyers for the Singapore government told a coroner's inquest on Monday that an American scientist found hanged in the city-state last year killed himself and was not murdered as his family claims.
Summing up state agencies' findings on the death of electronics engineer Shane Todd in June 2012, they said "it is clear from the medical forensic evidence that the medical cause of Shane's death was asphyxia due to hanging."
The coroner's verdict, which cannot be appealed, is scheduled to be handed down on July 8. Public hearings on the case were held from May 13-27.
read more
related:
AFP - Singapore says US scientist hanged himself
GlobalPost - Singapore says US scientist hanged himself
Business Times - State: Evidence of suicide overwhelming
gulfnews.com - Singapore says US scientist hanged himself
Businessweek - Shane Todd Killed Himself, Singapore Tells Coroner's Inquest
Channel News Asia - "Conspicuous absence" of evidence to support theory that Shane Todd
Marion family seeks justice outside of Singapore court
A Marion family, who recently dropped their inquest request into the suspicious circumstances surrounding their son's death in Singapore, is now seeking justice for him outside the court room.
Tainted evidence, false testimonies, and a corrupt prosecution, they're all things Mary and Rick Todd say led to them walking out of a Singapore courtroom during the inquiry into their son's death.
"It was a kangaroo court, it was a sham, it was a joke," Shane's mom, Mary said. "It had a been a mom tortured for [10 days], sitting there day after day, hour after hour - listening to lie after lie and realizing that they do not care about the truth."
Related Articles
read more
Dr Todd’s father gives the family side of the story
[The email was sent by Mr Rick Todd to several recipients today (4 Jun). Among the recipients were TRE, an editor of Associated Press and a Legislative Director of a congressman, Mr Thomas Culligan. Mr Culligan is the Legislative Director of congressman Frank Wolf. Mr Wolf is a Republican first elected in 1980 and one of the House’s leading crusaders for human rights. He is also an influential appropriator as chairman of the Appropriations’ Commerce, Justice, Science Subcommittee.]
* Warning: Documents below contain graphic photos that some readers may find disturbing. However, in the interest of allowing the Todd family to convey their points, TRE is publishing the information submitted by Mr Rick Todd uncensored:
- Info-evidence overview
- Info-unanswered questions
- Info-chronology
- Info-supporting documents
- Photo-room & computer
- Photo-head contusions
- Photo-hand comparisions
- Photo-neck abrasions
- Photo-neck comparisons
read more
Correction: Singapore-American’s Death story
In a May 27 story and headlines about a coroner’s inquest into the death of an American scientist, The Associated Press erroneously reported that police admitted violating or flouting official protocol in their investigation by not seeking fingerprints or DNA samples, and by examining the contents of a laptop computer in the dead man’s apartment. Rather than admitting to any incorrect behavior in testimony, a police investigator simply recounted his actions, which he described as permissible under the guidelines. Police deny that any protocol was violated or flouted while looking into the cause of death.
read more
AP report on Todd case 'mischievous'
An Associated Press (AP) report on the coroner's inquiry into the death of American research engineer Shane Todd on Monday was "inaccurate, misleading and mischievous".
This is what Singapore's Ambassador to the United States, Mr Ashok Kumar Mirpuri, said in a strongly-worded statement issued by the diplomatic mission in Washington D.C. to the wire agency yesterday. Copies of the statement were also sent to Washington Post and CBS News.
He said that the report "distorted" the Singapore police investigator's statement in the court proceedings that day.
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Coroner's inquiry into Shane Todd's death wraps up
After a 10-day hearing, the coroner's inquiry into the death of American researcher Shane Todd has wrapped up
Among the last witnesses to take the stand was investigating officer Muhammad Khaldun Sarip.
He maintained that his preliminary assessment of the scene of Dr Todd's death showed no signs of foul play.
A verdict is expected in early July.
Related:
Shane Todd's formula had nothing to do with gallium nitride, says IME witness
Ex-colleagues testify at coroner's inquiry into Shane Todd's death
Ex-colleagues say Dr Todd happy to leave IME
Singapore
police admits not following protocols to dust for fingerprints or
collect DNA samples as they already predetermined Shane Todd's death as
suicide
The Washington Post, 27 May 2013SINGAPORE (AP) -- Singapore police who examined the scene of an American's death admitted on the last day of a coroner's inquest Monday that they deviated from official protocols by not dusting for fingerprints or collecting DNA samples, and by examining the contents of a laptop computer there.
When asked by government lawyers why police had not ordered a further investigation of the apartment, police
Sgt. Muhammad Khaldun Bin Sarif said he and his partner had made "a
preliminary assessment" that pointed to suicide and determined there
were "no signs of foul play." He said the officers decided as a result
"not to perform fingerprint dustings or DNA swabs."
Asked why he had deviated from police protocols by assessing a personal
laptop at a crime scene, Khaldun said he had found two notes in Todd's
apartment, one of which contained a password which he used to gain
access to the laptop nearby.
Khaldun explained that the protocol was only "a guideline which can be deviated from."
He said he and his partner made an "operational decision" to assess
Todd's laptop because the note containing the password "was left there
for a reason" and would help police in determining whether there was
foul play involved. Full story
Related:
read moreRelated:
- Singapore police acknowledge violating protocols in investigation of American's death - Fox News
- Singapore police acknowledge violating protocols in investigation of American's death - The Republic
- Protocols Flouted in U.S. Death - 27 First News
- Singapore police say protocols flouted in US death - News12 Brooklyn
- Singapore police admit failings in death of American - Independent.co.uk
- Singapore Police Say Protocols Flouted in US Death - ABC News
Questions remain on the curious case of Shane Todd
Now that the family of Shane Todd has left in a huff, the remainder of the coroner’s inquiry becomes a matter of going through the motions. We can expect more witnesses and experts to testify and throw further doubt on his parents’ murder claims.
Going by news reports over the past week — bearing in mind they are largely from the local mainstream media — there seems little doubt that the former engineer with the Institute of Microelectronics (IME) had indeed committed suicide. Wrong to cry murder over it; the Singapore police must be feeling pretty smug now.
Unanswered questions - It is a shame the Todds won’t be there because the circumstances remain puzzling. Questions remain unanswered, albeit questions that may be beyond the scope of the inquiry. The most fundamental question is this: Why did Shane Todd commit suicide? This was a smart, young researcher with a PhD qualification and a bright career ahead of him. Granted, the stint at IME did not work out well, but he had already quit the job and bought air tickets to return to the US. There were also no signs of problems in his relationship with girlfriend Shirley Sarmiento.
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Regrettable that Todds won't testify to clear air: Minister
FOREIGN
Minister K. Shanmugam yesterday said that key questions in the case
involving American researcher Shane Todd that his family had raised
could have been addressed better if they had chosen to testify in court,
instead of walking out on the coroner's inquiry into his death.
These include the conflicting accounts of how a major piece of evidence had been recovered.
They had also claimed they did not know a witness, though he testified that they had met in Singapore just days after their son was found dead last June.
read more
Montana family exits son's Singapore death court case, calls process "a complete joke"
A Marion family has dropped their inquest request into the suspicious death of their son who died in his Singapore apartment last year. They say they lost confidence in the court process
Shane Todd's parents tell us they believe their son was murdered saying his death was covered up to make it appear he committed suicide. 32 year-old Todd had worked for the state-run Institute of Microeconomics in Singapore - and was found dead just days after quitting his job.
His parents, Mary and Rick Todd, told us their eldest son was working with Galium Nitride technology - and his life was threatened when he refused to turn the technology over for military use. When a suicide note was discovered which contained inaccuracies, even mentioning family related events that never occurred, the Todd's said they knew their son was murdered.
read more
Singapore police acknowledge violating protocols in investigation of American’s death
Singapore police who examined the scene of an American’s death admitted on the last day of a coroner’s inquest Monday that they deviated from official protocols by not dusting for fingerprints or collecting DNA samples, and by examining the contents of a laptop computer there.
Shane Truman Todd’s body was found in his Singapore apartment by his girlfriend last June 24, and police have said he killed himself. State counsel presented evidence of links to suicide websites on the 31-year-old’s laptop and suicide letters written to family members and loved ones.
Todd’s parents, Rick and Mary Todd, told The Associated Press in March that they believe he may have been murdered over his research in the U.S. into material used to make heat-resistant semiconductors, a technology with both civilian and military applications. The Todds have received assistance in the case from U.S. senators and the FBI.
read more
Family wants US Congress and expert to prove son was murdered
The parents of a US scientist found hanged in Singapore last year say they will seek a US congressional inquiry and tap a celebrity Thai pathologist to prove their son was murdered.
Mary Todd, mother of the late researcher Shane Todd whose death in June 2012 was ruled a suicide by the Singapore police, indicated the family did not expect the US Government to intervene because of its interests in Asia.
“We don’t know, we don’t know what the US government will do,” she said at Changi Airport before she, her husband Rick and two sons boarded a flight back to the United States.
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US medical examiner on Shane Todd's death: I can only guess
He had previously said that Dr Shane Todd had died after being garrotted - which is strangulation with a wire or cord.
But on Tuesday, the US medical examiner, who had been engaged by Dr Todd's parents to do an independent post-mortem report, backed away from that observation and said the death was "by a mechanism I can only guess".
"He could have been tased, he could have been placed in a carotid armlock (neck chokehold)", said Dr Edward Adelstein, chief of the Department of Veterans Affairs laboratories and deputy medical examiner in Boone and Callaway counties in Missouri state.
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U.S. Medical Examiners: American’s Death in Singapore Not Murder
Research scientist Shane Todd was found hanged in his Singapore apartment last June.
Two U.S.-based medical examiners on Wednesday dismissed theories that American researcher Shane Todd was murdered in Singapore, agreeing with the findings of the city-state’s pathologist that he died from “asphyxia due to hanging” in a suicide.
The cause of Mr. Todd’s death is the subject of an inquiry now in its second week. The inquiry ends next Tuesday, and a coroner’s finding of the cause of death is expected in June.
The U.S. medical examiners’ testimony followed a dramatic development: Mr. Todd’s parents – who have waged a high-profile campaign against the Singapore police’s initial finding that their son committed suicide – quit the proceedings, discharged their attorneys and vowed to take their contention that their son was murdered to “court of public opinion.”
read more
The world’s eye on Shane Todd
A Democrat President holds office in the White House but has to confront an increasingly difficult and intractable Congress.
Meanwhile, a Singaporean court-case involving an American makes international headlines, including and particularly in his home country.
Official exchanges pertinent to the case are shared by high-ranking interlocutors on both sides.
The recent media coverage of the unfortunate Shane Todd incident has highlighted a very real but unconscious and harmful stereotype of depression and its sufferers.
As I combed through the many articles online, I noticed that while each article had differing nuggets of information, ranging from the Todd family’s expert witness having a southern drawl to Mrs Todd calling the Singapore judicial system corrupt, all the articles have been consistent is reporting that Shane Todd suffered from depression.
While seemingly innocuous, the implication is obvious – that because he suffered from depression, there is a high chance that he did indeed commit suicide. This subtly framed assertion has far reaching consequences. Not only does it perpetuate ignorance, it further stigmatises a valid medical condition that requires due care.
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Mystery surrounding American's death in Singapore deepens as parents quit inquest into son's death
Rick Todd looks on while his wife Mary describes bruising of their son Shane’s neck during a break at an inquest looking into Shane’s death in Singapore.
A tearful Rick Todd publicly apologized on behalf of his wife who had called the Singapore court system “corrupt” as a much-watched inquiry into the death of their son, an American scientist working on sensitive research, finished its fourth day.
“We’d just seen a lot of pictures of our son – our dead son – and it was a very emotional morning. We’re sorry the word ‘corrupt’ came out, and we have faith in the Singapore court system,” he said Thursday to reporters.
His wife Mary had called the Singapore court process “corrupt” when speaking to reporters earlier Thursday.
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Medical Examiner Revises Murder Claims in U.S. Engineer’s Death
A U.S.-based medical examiner on Tuesday withdrew his initial finding that an American engineer found dead in Singapore last year may have been strangled to death with a cord, but still insisted that the man was likely murdered, disputing initial police findings that pointed to suicide.
Edward Adelstein, who was engaged by the family of the late Shane Todd, told a Singaporean court that he changed his opinion on the cause of Mr. Todd’s death after receiving new information from the family, including autopsy photographs.
His testimony, made to a coroner’s inquiry into Mr. Todd’s death, opposes that of four other experts, including two Singaporean state pathologists and two U.S.-based medical examiners, who concluded the man had died by hanging in a likely suicide.
Rick and Mary Todd, parents of American researcher Shane Todd, arrive at the Subordinate Court, on 13 May 2013 for the coroner's inquiry on the death of Dr Todd. The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has backed evidence presented in court, which showed that the hard drive in the centre of the Dr Todd coroner's inquiry was recovered by the police at the American researcher's home where he was found hanged. -- ST PHOTO: KUA CHEE SIONG
The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has backed evidence presented in court, which showed that the hard drive in the centre of the Shane Todd coroner's inquiry was recovered by the police at the American researcher's home where he was found hanged.
The United States law enforcement agency also confirmed that it is the same hard drive that the Singapore police had returned to Dr Todd's parents after his death on Jun 28 last year.
This was also a day after police had examined the hard drive and determined that it was not relevant to the its investigations, said the FBI.
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Shanmugam Says It’s Regretful Todd Family Quit Coroner’s Inquest
Bloomberg, 22 May 2013
Singapore Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam said it was regretful that the family of U.S. research engineer Shane Todd pulled out from a coroner’s inquest today.
“It’s unfortunate that if they don’t take part, this assertion which formed a key part of their conspiracy theory can’t be tested,” Shanmugam said.
The family had said Todd may have been killed because of his sensitive work at Singapore’s Institute of Microelectronics and possible technology transfers to China’s Huawei Technologies Co.. The island’s police ruled he committed suicide by hanging. Full story
Shane Todd did not commit suicide?
Dr Adelstein added however, that he still believes Dr Todd's death to be a homicide.
When questioned by Senior Counsel Isaac Tan as to what caused Dr Todd's death, Dr Adelstein suggested that he could have died from a taser or from a carotid armlock or a neck chokehold - but admitted he did not have medical evidence and could not know for sure.
Dr Adelstein added that he believes that Dr Todd was already dead when he was "strung up with the ligature around his neck". He confirmed however, that he was not a certified forensic pathologist.
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Mystery surrounding American's death in Singapore deepens as parents quit inquest into son's death
The parents of an American software engineer who believe their son was murdered last year in Singapore withdrew from the inquest Wednesday, saying they have no confidence in the city-state's legal process.
Shane Truman Todd's body was found in his Singapore apartment by his girlfriend last June 24, and police have said he killed himself. State counsel presented evidence of links to suicide websites on the 31-year-old's laptop and suicide letters written to his family members and loved ones.
But parents Rick and Mary Todd have said they consider the evidence fake. They told The Associated Press in March that they believe he may have been murdered over his research in the U.S. into material used to make heat-resistant semiconductors, a technology with both civilian and military applications. The Todds have received assistance in the case from U.S. senators and the FBI.
read more
Parents withdraw from inquiry into death of US engineer Shane Todd
The parents of a U.S. engineer found dead in Singapore last year said on Wednesday they will not take part in the rest of a coroner's inquiry into his death, which they say was linked to a project involving the transfer of sensitive technology to China
In a statement issued through their lawyers, Rick and Mary Todd said they had lost confidence in the system investigating the death of their 31-year-old son, Shane, who was found hanging in his Singapore apartment last June
The Todds did not appear in court on Wednesday, the day after a U.S. medical examiner they had hired retracted an earlier statement that Shane Todd had been garrotted.
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Singapore Says It’s Regretful Todd Family Quit Coroner’s Inquest
Rick Todd, right, and his wife Mary, second right, with their two sons, John, left, and Dylan wait at the departure hall check-in counter of Changi International Airport in Singapore on May 23, 2013. Photographer: Roslan Rahman/AFP
Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam said it was regretful that the family of U.S. research engineer Shane Todd pulled out from a coroner’s inquest yesterday.
The Todd family quit the inquest, opened by Singapore to determine how the 31-year-old died in June, after walking out of the courtroom on May 21. Edward Adelstein, a medical examiner engaged by the family, testified earlier this week Todd may have been shot by a taser gun or killed in an arm-lock after earlier saying he may have been strangled to death based on pictures of the body.
“It’s unfortunate that they decided to leave after their key witness” Adelstein testified, Shanmugam told reporters in the city state yesterday. “He, of course, has changed his original testimony and has confirmed that Dr. Todd was not killed by garroting.”
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Family of dead American condemns Singapore inquiry
The family of a US scientist found hanged in Singapore last year walked out of a coroner's inquiry into their son's death today, saying they had “lost faith'' in the proceedings.
“The prosecution brings forth witnesses at the last minute and we have no chance to question it. Basically we actually have lost faith in the process,''
Rick Todd, father of the late Shane Todd, told reporters outside a courthouse.--AFP
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Shane Todd’s family walks out of Singapore inquest after court rejected their request for adjournment to examine new evidence from last minute witness introduced by state prosecution
When questioned by Senior Counsel Isaac Tan as to what caused Dr Todd's death, Dr Adelstein suggested that he could have died from a taser or from a carotid armlock or a neck chokehold - but admitted he did not have medical evidence and could not know for sure.
Dr Adelstein added that he believes that Dr Todd was already dead when he was "strung up with the ligature around his neck". He confirmed however, that he was not a certified forensic pathologist.
read more
Mystery surrounding American's death in Singapore deepens as parents quit inquest into son's death
The parents of an American software engineer who believe their son was murdered last year in Singapore withdrew from the inquest Wednesday, saying they have no confidence in the city-state's legal process.
Shane Truman Todd's body was found in his Singapore apartment by his girlfriend last June 24, and police have said he killed himself. State counsel presented evidence of links to suicide websites on the 31-year-old's laptop and suicide letters written to his family members and loved ones.
But parents Rick and Mary Todd have said they consider the evidence fake. They told The Associated Press in March that they believe he may have been murdered over his research in the U.S. into material used to make heat-resistant semiconductors, a technology with both civilian and military applications. The Todds have received assistance in the case from U.S. senators and the FBI.
read more
Parents withdraw from inquiry into death of US engineer Shane Todd
The parents of a U.S. engineer found dead in Singapore last year said on Wednesday they will not take part in the rest of a coroner's inquiry into his death, which they say was linked to a project involving the transfer of sensitive technology to China
In a statement issued through their lawyers, Rick and Mary Todd said they had lost confidence in the system investigating the death of their 31-year-old son, Shane, who was found hanging in his Singapore apartment last June
The Todds did not appear in court on Wednesday, the day after a U.S. medical examiner they had hired retracted an earlier statement that Shane Todd had been garrotted.
read more
Singapore Says It’s Regretful Todd Family Quit Coroner’s Inquest
Rick Todd, right, and his wife Mary, second right, with their two sons, John, left, and Dylan wait at the departure hall check-in counter of Changi International Airport in Singapore on May 23, 2013. Photographer: Roslan Rahman/AFP
Foreign Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam said it was regretful that the family of U.S. research engineer Shane Todd pulled out from a coroner’s inquest yesterday.
The Todd family quit the inquest, opened by Singapore to determine how the 31-year-old died in June, after walking out of the courtroom on May 21. Edward Adelstein, a medical examiner engaged by the family, testified earlier this week Todd may have been shot by a taser gun or killed in an arm-lock after earlier saying he may have been strangled to death based on pictures of the body.
“It’s unfortunate that they decided to leave after their key witness” Adelstein testified, Shanmugam told reporters in the city state yesterday. “He, of course, has changed his original testimony and has confirmed that Dr. Todd was not killed by garroting.”
read more
Family of dead American condemns Singapore inquiry
The family of a US scientist found hanged in Singapore last year walked out of a coroner's inquiry into their son's death today, saying they had “lost faith'' in the proceedings.
“The prosecution brings forth witnesses at the last minute and we have no chance to question it. Basically we actually have lost faith in the process,''
Rick Todd, father of the late Shane Todd, told reporters outside a courthouse.--AFP
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Shane Todd’s family walks out of Singapore inquest after court rejected their request for adjournment to examine new evidence from last minute witness introduced by state prosecution
South China Morning Post, 21 May 2013The family of a US scientist found hanged in Singapore last year walked out of a coroner’s inquiry into their son’s death on Tuesday, saying they had “lost faith” in the proceedings.
“The prosecution brings forth witnesses at the last minute and we have no chance to question it. Basically we actually have lost faith in the process,” the late researcher’s father Rick Todd told reporters outside a courthouse.
The family stood up and left the court after learning that a Frenchman who knew Todd, Luis Alejandro Andro Montes, was going to testify that the American was still alive the day before his body was found on June 24, last year. Full story
Related:
read moreU.S. man fought to the end, despite Singapore’s ‘suicide’ claims, his family says
A 31-year-old U.S. citizen, whose questionable death in June is believed by authorities in Singapore to have been a suicide, had defensive wounds on his body and hands and had tried unsuccessfully to slip his fingers under a garrote that had been wrapped tightly around his neck to end his life, his family says.
Shane Todd, 31, an electrical engineer who worked for the Singapore-based Institute for Microelectronics (IME), was found hanging from a bathroom door in his Singapore apartment in what local police authorities called a suicide, but his mother, Mary, said her son “put up quite a fight.”
“His knuckles were bruised. You could see by his fingers that he had tried to slip them under the wire that was around his neck. He had obvious defensive wounds,” Mrs. Todd told The Washington Times on Wednesday, recounting an autopsy review by a U.S. pathologist hired by the family and what the family saw once the body was returned home.
Singapore mystery: Couple finds a national audience for son’s story
A Marion couple seeking the truth about their son’s mysterious death last June in Singapore are making the rounds in the national media circuit in an effort to draw attention to the international case — and action from the U.S. government.
Rick and Mary Todd’s 31-year-old son, Shane, an electronics engineer, was found hanging from a bathroom door in what was deemed an apparent suicide by the Singapore police
He had confided to his parents he was worried his work was jeopardizing U.S. national security. Just before he was ready to leave Singapore, he was found dead.
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Singapore blocks FBI inquiry into American’s death
The parents of a U.S. electronics engineer who was found hanged in Singapore last year say the FBI is “handcuffed” from launching a proper investigation by the police there, but are pressing their case with the island city-state’s ambassador.
Shane Todd, 31, was expected to return to the U.S. for a new job before a friend found his body hanging from the bathroom door in his apartment in June.
Family and friends said he was not depressed but was increasingly anxious about the implications for U.S. national security of his work with a high-tech government agency in Singapore and its Chinese silent partner.
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Baucus Demands Answers on Engineer Death in Singapore
U.S. Senator Max Baucus said he is “nowhere close” to resolving his questions about the death of an American research engineer in Singapore.
Baucus, a Montana Democrat, met on March 5 with Singapore’s ambassador to the U.S., Ashok Kumar Mirpuri, and said yesterday he has more meetings scheduled. Baucus is probing the June 2012 death of Shane Todd, who worked at the Institute of Microelectronics in Singapore, a unit of Singapore’s state-run Agency for Science, Technology and Research.
“I want to get to the bottom of it, and I made that very clear to him,” Baucus said in a brief interview in Washington. “And I’ll do what it takes to get to the bottom of it.”
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FBI asked to help unravel Todd mystery
Singapore police have asked the Federal Bureau of Investigation to assist in their probe into the death of Shane Todd, a young American engineer who died in contested circumstances last year.
In a letter received on Thursday by the FBI’s attache at the US embassy in the city state, Singapore police asked the US agency for help in “two specific areas” relating to Mr Todd’s death. The embassy informed the Todd family of the request in an e-mail on Friday, but did not detail what areas the police had requested help with.
The FBI and the Singapore police, which had previously resisted any outside participation in the probe, both declined to comment.
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Calif. engineer's death in Singapore linked to cyber espionage?
For years, the U.S. intelligence community has warned that cyber attacks from China and other countries are the biggest threat to our national security. Now, some are wondering whether the death of an engineer from California could be linked to cyber espionage.
In 2010, 29-year-old Shane Todd moved to Singapore for an engineering job with a government research firm called the Institute of Micro Electronics or IME.
"He was a young man that wanted an adventure and thought it would be super-cool to live in a foreign country and he really liked it when he first got there," Mary Todd, his mother, recalled.
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Family of engineer who died in Singapore after warning of Chinese spying wants answers
The family of an American who turned up dead in Singapore after expressing fear he was being duped by Chinese spies is calling for a congressional investigation into his death in Singapore.
Relatives of Shane Todd, 31, believe the Montana man — who was worried that his employers in Singapore were using him to help China get its hands on sensitive technologies to harm U.S. national security — was murdered to cover up his discovery of the purported plot.
“He told us that his life was being threatened,” Todd’s mother, Mary, told Fox News Channel on Friday.
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'His life was being threatened': Family of engineer who died in Singapore after warning of Chinese spying insist he did NOT commit suicide
The family of an American who died in Singapore believes he was killed by Chinese spies and is calling for a congressional investigation into his death.
The body of Shane Todd, a 31-year-old electronics engineer, was found hanging from his bathroom wall just two days after his final day of work in June 2012. He was set to return to the U.S. the following week after quitting his job of 18 months at the Institute of Microelectronics.
His death was reported a suicide and police in Singapore reported finding two suicide notes on his computer. But Todd's mother, Mary Todd, said she immediately doubted the authenticity of the notes.
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Police respond to newspaper report over US engineer’s sudden death
Shane Todd, an electronics engineer was found dead in his Singapore apartment last year. (Yahoo! file photo)
[UPDATED 17 Feb, 10AM: The Singapore Police have released a statement in response to the FT report. Here it is in full.
"The Police investigate all unnatural death cases thoroughly, working closely with the pathologist and other relevant experts, and no prior assumptions are made on the cause of death. Our procedures for investigating cases, particularly those involving death of persons, are strict and of high international standards. We have handled this case in the same way as other cases that Police have looked into.
“All crime scene locations which have the potential for recovery of evidence are handled with care and are protected from interference of any kind so as to preserve any trace evidence. The sites are secured by Police for the duration required for scene examination and evidence collection. The conditions and items found at the crime scene are carefully recorded in great detail, as well as conserved and removed for subsequent laboratory analysis.
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Murder in Singapore?
Halfway around the world in Singapore, a brilliant young electronics engineer with ties to the Flathead Valley was found dead in his apartment last June.
Shane Todd, the oldest son of Rick and Mary Todd of Marion, was hanging from a bathroom door when his girlfriend stopped by after she hadn’t heard from him for a couple of days. The Singapore police deemed the mysterious death an apparent suicide.
But the circumstantial evidence the Todds found at their son’s apartment, along with what they knew to be true about their son and all sorts of other far-reaching clues, didn’t add up to him taking his own life.
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Did a young American engineer commit suicide, or was he murdered?
A remarkable story in the Financial Times about the mysterious 2012 death of a young American engineer in Singapore has raised serious questions about whether he was murdered to keep him from blowing the whistle on the theft of militarily sensitive technology by a Singapore government-owned research institution and Huawei Technologies, the Chinese tech giant.
The story, nearly 5,500 words in length, was written by former New York Times correspondent Raymond Bonner and Christine Spolar, the FT's investigations editor. Read it in full here.
In a country where any controversial story invites defamation or contempt of court lawsuits in Singapore courts from the government and/or the family of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, the FT story outlines what appear to be serious discrepancies in the investigation by the Singapore authorities into the death of Todd. It also describes concerted moves by the Singapore government and a wide range of other institutions to stonewall outside investigators, including refusing any attempts to bring in the US Federal Bureau of Investigation.
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Mystery death of American engineer working in Singapore
The hanging death of an American electronics engineer in Singapore last summer has ignited an international mystery, after his family and girlfriend developed suspicions that he may have been murdered the week before he was scheduled to return home to the U.S.
The family of Shane Todd visited his apartment in the Chinatown district of Singapore days after they received news of his June 2012 death, saying that their son had misgivings about some of the work he was doing for the company.
Dr Todd, 31, was slated to return to the U.S. after completing an 18-month stint at the Institute of Microelectronics, and his family is now desperately searching for how – and why – their son is dead.
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Death in Singapore
On June 24 last year, the body of a young US electronics engineer, Shane Todd, was found hanging in his Singapore apartment. Police said it was suicide, but the Todd family believe he was murdered. Shane had feared that a project he was working on was compromising US national security. His parents want to know if that project sent him to his grave
Mary and Rick Todd were anxious about entering the apartment where their oldest son had lived and died. Late last June the couple had flown from Montana to Denver to Los Angeles to a colonial-era house in the Chinatown district of Singapore to try to make sense of an unthinkable loss: Shane Todd, a young engineer who had just wrapped up an 18-month stint with a government research institute known as IME, was dead – an apparent suicide, according to the Singapore police. Mrs Todd felt her heart pounding as she climbed the narrow staircase to his apartment and thought about what the police had told her two days earlier.
Shane had died a week before he was to return to the US. The police said he had drilled holes into his bathroom wall, bolted in a pulley, then slipped a black strap through the pulley and wrapped it around the toilet several times. He then tethered the strap to his neck and jumped from a chair. Shane, 6ft 1in and nearly 200lb, hanged himself from the bathroom door, the autopsy report said.
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Huawei denies work in field linked to U.S. death in Singapore
Chinese telecommunications company Huawei said on Monday it had not worked with an institute in Singapore on any projects in the specialist field of an American engineer who died mysteriously last year shortly after leaving the institute.
Britain's Financial Times said on Saturday that Shane Todd had been working on "what was apparently a joint project" between Singapore's Institute of Microelectronics, or IME, and Huawei shortly before he died last June.
His parents have said he was murdered because of his involvement in the project, which they say involved exporting sensitive military technology to China.
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Police deny allegations US engineer's death not properly investigated
The Singapore Police Force (SPF) said its procedures for investigating cases, in particular those involving deaths, are of high international standards.
It was responding to queries from Channel NewsAsia about the death of American electronics engineer Shane Todd.
According to a Financial Times report published on February 15, Mr Todd allegedly hanged himself in the toilet of his apartment in Chinatown last year.
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S'pore police want engineer's hard drive
The police have asked for an external hard drive recovered by the family of an American electronics engineer from the Singapore apartment where he was found dead last year.
The police are working with no prior assumptions and remain objective in their investigation of the death, a spokesman said last night.
Reacting to a report in the Financial Times, the police said they "investigate all unnatural death cases thoroughly, working closely with the pathologist and other relevant experts, and no prior assumptions are made on the cause of death".
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Police defend probe into Singapore death
Singapore police released a statement on Sunday defending their investigation into the death of Shane Todd, an American engineer who had been employed by IME, a government research agency, found hanged in his Singapore apartment in June. The Financial Times reported on Todd’s death in its Weekend magazine.
The police had previously declined to answer the FT’s questions about the death of Todd, whose body was found in his apartment after his last day at work at IME. Todd’s parents, Rick and Mary Todd, believe the police have mishandled the investigation and too quickly considered his death a suicide.
The family has asked that America’s Federal Bureau of Investigation assist and be involved in investigating a possible murder. The Singapore police must request FBI assistance before the US agency can get involved
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S'pore gallium nitride research linked to US engineer's death
Local police say they are still looking into the death of American engineer Shane Todd here last June, but a U.S. news report suggests his death could be linked to research work on gallium nitride (GaN) conducted for his then-employer, Institute of Microelectronics, and an unidentified Chinese partner company.
A report Friday by Financial Times (FT) said Todd had headed a research team at IME which focused on the development of gallium nitride, a substance which can be used in both commercial and military applications ranging from light-emitting displays and cellular phone base stations to radar and satellite communications.
IME is a research institute under lcoal statutory board, Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star). It was founded in 1991 to help enhance the value-add of Singapore's microelectronics industry by undertaking core research and development (R&D) in microelectronics, supporting the industry's R&D needs, and developing skilled research personnel, according to IME's Web site
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Is it suicide or is it murder?
Dr Shane Todd was found hanged in an apparent suicide in his home near Chinatown (above) last June. According to the FT report, his parents claim the Singapore police had not done their job properly in investigating his death.
A sensational news report about the death of an American research scientist in Singapore that cast aspersions on two Singapore public institutions prompted responses from both agencies on Sunday.
In the Financial Times article, the scientist's parents alleged that the police here had not done its job properly in investigating their son's death.
But the police say they investigate all unnatural death cases thoroughly and their procedures are of high international standards.
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Full coverage
Financial Times - 4 hours ago
Singapore police have asked the Federal Bureau of Investigation to
assist in their probe into the death of Shane Todd, a young American
engineer who died in contested circumstances last year. In a letter
received on Thursday by the FBI's attache at the US ...
Fox News - 3 hours ago
Back -- to one of our top stories the new calls for -- congressional
investigation into the death of an American man working in Singapore. --
Todd was found dead in his home overseas last June officials in
Singapore call -- -- suicide. But his family believes it ...
Daily Mail - 4 hours ago
The family of an American who died in Singapore believes he was killed
by Chinese spies and is calling for a congressional investigation into
his death. The body of Shane Todd, a 31-year-old electronics engineer,
was found hanging from his bathroom door ..
Fox News - 5 hours ago
The family of an American who turned up dead in Singapore after
expressing fear he was being duped by Chinese spies is calling for a
congressional investigation into his death in Singapore. Relatives of
Shane Todd, 31, believe the Montana man — who ...
NDTV - 6 hours ago
Chinese telecommunications company Huawei said on Monday it had not
worked with an institute in Singapore on any projects in the specialist
field of an American engineer who died mysteriously last year shortly
after leaving the institute. Britain's Financial ...
AsiaOne - 12 hours ago
SINGAPORE - The police have asked for an external hard drive recovered
by the family of an American electronics engineer from the Singapore
apartment where he was found dead last year. The police are working with
no prior assumptions and remain ...
AsiaOne - 12 hours ago
Dr Shane Todd was found hanged in an apparent suicide in his home near
Chinatown (above) last June. According to the FT report, his parents
claim the Singapore police had not done their job properly in
investigating his death. By Feng Zengkun The Straits ...
TechEye - 1 hour ago
A weird story is breaking involving the death of a US engineer and some
top technology companies. The Financial Times ran a yarn on Saturday
saying that Shane Todd had been working on "what was apparently a joint
project" between Singapore's Institute ...
China Digital Times - 2 hours ago
The Financial Times reported last week that the parents of American
electronics engineer Shane Todd, who died mysteriously in Singapore just
before he was due to leave his job and return to the U.S. last summer,
believe he was murdered in connection with ...
Financial Times - Feb 17, 2013
Singapore police released a statement on Sunday defending their
investigation into the death of Shane Todd, an American engineer who had
been employed by IME, a government research agency, found hanged in his
Singapore apartment in June
Daily Mail - 15 hours ago
The family of Shane Todd visited his apartment in the Chinatown
district of Singapore days after they received news of his June 2012
death, saying that their son had misgivings about some of the work he
was doing for the company. Dr Todd, 31, was slated to ...
ZDNet - Feb 18, 2013
Summary: American Shane Todd's death in June 2012 has been linked to
his work on gallium nitride for Singapore's Institute of
Microelectronics and an unidentified Chinese company suspected to be
Huawei. Police investigations are ongoing. Kevin Kwang ...
Channel News Asia - Feb 16, 2013
SINGAPORE: The Singapore Police Force (SPF) said its procedures for
investigating cases, in particular those involving deaths, are of high
international standards. It was responding to queries from Channel
NewsAsia about the death of American electronics ...
Asian Correspondent - Feb 18, 2013
A remarkable story in the Financial Times about the mysterious 2012
death of a young American engineer in Singapore has raised serious
questions about whether he was murdered to keep him from blowing the
whistle on the theft of militarily sensitive ..
CNBC Monday, 18 Feb 2013
