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The crimes went undetected for almost five years as Kandasamy Senapathi would return the jewellery before scheduled audits.
Lydia Lam @LydiaLamCNA
30 May 2023 11:47AM (Updated: 30 May 2023 01:20PM)
SINGAPORE: Over almost five years, the chief priest of Singapore’s oldest Hindu temple misused ceremonial jewellery by pawning it repeatedly – to the tune of over S$2 million (US$1.5 million).
Kandasamy Senapathi, 39, was caught only when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, throwing the regular audit timing off and revealing the missing jewellery.
Kandasamy was sentenced to six years’ jail on Tuesday (May 30) for his crimes.
He pleaded guilty to two charges of criminal breach of trust by dishonest misappropriation and two charges of transferring criminal proceeds out of the country. Another six charges were considered in sentencing.
The court heard that Kandasamy, an Indian national, was employed by the Hindu Endowments Board as a priest at Sri Mariamman Temple from December 2013 until he resigned on Mar 30, 2020.
He first served as the second-in-charge to the temple’s chief priest, before being promoted to the role of chief priest in July 2018 when his predecessor retired.
Kandasamy was entrusted with the keys and combination number code to the safe in the temple’s holy sanctum sometime in 2014.
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Defence lawyer Mohan Das Naidu asked for about three years’ jail instead. He said there was no loss to the temple and his client had kept his word, with the jewellery eventually redeemed even before the temple made a police report.
Mr Naidu said it all started when Kandasamy wanted to help a friend raise funds for cancer, and also to help schools and temples in India.
However, it “got out of hand”. The lawyer said what Kandasamy did was wrong, but stressed that there was no loss to the temple as the jewellery was returned.
He said Kandasamy’s intention was “never to deprive the temple” of its jewellery, but he was “caught up in this vicious cycle of pawning and redeeming, pawning and redeeming”.
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CRIMES UNCOVERED
In March 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in Singapore, the temple had to delay an external audit because of the “circuit breaker” measures forbidding non-essential activity in the country.
However, a member of the temple’s finance team arranged for an audit to be conducted during Phase 2 of the circuit breaker between July 2020 and August 2020.
In June 2020, this staff member was arranging for the audit when Kandasamy told him that he did not have the key to the safe. He said he had likely left the key in India while he was visiting family.
However, the staff member insisted that the audit had to be done, and Kandasamy eventually confessed to him that he had taken the jewellery for pawning.
At the time, 17 pieces of jewellery were with two pawn shops. Kandasamy borrowed about S$521,000 from friends and went with the temple employee to redeem the jewellery.
In the end, all the jewellery was returned to the temple and the temple suffered no loss, said the prosecutor.
The member of the temple’s finance team later filed a police report.
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weehingthong 