Man fined $4,000 over forging grandfather’s death certificate to get compassionate leave

1 week ago 56

SINGAPORE - Upset that his girlfriend had cheated on him, a man could not focus at work and forged a death certificate for his grandfather to get three days’ paid compassionate leave.

On Feb 5, Barath Gopal, 29, was fined $4,000 after he pleaded guilty to one count of forging a document purporting to be a death certificate with the intent to commit fraud.

The Singaporean worked in a security financing firm from November 2022 to December 2023.

The court heard that in November 2023, Barath’s then-girlfriend had cheated on him, which caused him to be upset and unable to focus on his work.

Despite having four days of annual leave that he could apply for, Barath lied to his supervisor that his grandfather had died in his sleep and asked for paid compassionate leave from Nov 8 to Nov 10, 2023. His request was granted.

When his supervisor told him to submit his grandfather’s death certificate, he said he could only get it after his father returned from India.

Barath then asked a friend whose relative had died in July 2023 for a copy of that relative’s death certificate.

He told the friend he needed it to explain his absence from work when he attended the relative’s funeral in July.

Barath then forged the death certificate for his grandfather on his laptop and sent a photo of a part of it to his supervisor, deliberately omitting the bottom of the document which had a QR code for verifying the authenticity of the certificate.

Upon his supervisor’s insistence, he eventually sent the entire document. He resigned in December when he knew his offence would come to light.

The prosecutor for Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, which issues death certificates, sought a fine of $4,000 to $5,000, noting that the company lost almost $500, the associated income from Barath’s paid bereavement leave, as a result of his actions.

For forging a death certificate, an offender can be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to 10 years, or both.

  • Nadine Chua is a crime and court journalist at The Straits Times.

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

Read Entire Article