HSA Charges Five Men for Alleged Trafficking of Etomidate Vaporiser Pods; One Man Caught with $870,000 Worth of Pods

The Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has charged five men from 25 August 2026 to 28 August 2026 for the alleged trafficking of etomidate vaporiser pods under the Tobacco and Vaporisers Control Act 1993 (TVCA). Three of the five men were linked to three separate cases. The other two men, Jerome Wee Chuan Kai and Tan Si Yuan, were linked to a case related to an enforcement operation in Geylang.

2            Two men, 36-year-old Lee Chiun Yong, and 30-year-old Kalaiarasu Krishinan were charged in court on 25 August 2026 and 27 August 2026. They were caught separately at the checkpoints during routine checks.

3            Another two men, 26-year-old Jerome Wee Chuan Kai and 37-year-old Tan Si Yuan, were caught during a joint enforcement operation by the Singapore Police Force (SPF), Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) and HSA in Geylang.

4            A fifth man, 24-year-old Tiong Hin Yang, was caught during HSA’s raid of his residence at Bedok Reservoir.

5            Wee, Tan and Tiong were charged in court on 28 August 2026.

Checkpoint detection case: Lee Chiun Yong

6            On 23 August 2026, Lee Chiun Yong was driving into Singapore through Woodlands Checkpoint and was directed for enhanced checks by officers from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA). The ICA officers detected three black bags in the rear boot which contained packets of vaporiser pods and alerted HSA officers. HSA took over investigations at the scene and seized a total of 12,415 vaporiser pods.  Laboratory testing confirmed that the seized pods contained etomidate. The pods have an estimated street value of S$870,000 and were allegedly intended for supply. This is the largest seizure of etomidate pods so far. Investigations are ongoing. Please refer to the Annex for the photographs of the seized items.

7            The suspect was remanded for a week to assist with further investigations. The case was mentioned again in court on 1 September 2026 and has been adjourned to 13 October 2026.