In essence, a voluntary surrender is visiting the law enforcement to confess to a criminal offense you’ve fully commited, rather than awaiting the law enforcement to discover and arrest you.

What Comes about Once you Voluntarily Surrender into the Police?
The treatments you'll deal with whenever you voluntarily surrender to your police are similar to for those who had been arrested.

The steps taken towards you rely largely on no matter if you’ve committed an arrestable or non-arrestable offence.

Arrestable offences refer to offences that allow the police to generate an arrest without a warrant, and incorporate offences like theft, theft and rape. The rule of thumb is the fact offences that are punishable with at the least three many years of imprisonment, or maybe a death sentence, are categorised as arrestable.

Alternatively, a non-arrestable offence is a person where by the police will require to acquire a warrant prior to finishing up an arrest. Offences that tumble below this group are voluntarily causing harm and dishonest misappropriation of residence, among Other individuals.

Should you have committed an arrestable offence
For those who have fully commited an arrestable offence, the police will adhere to an arrest technique that commences with taking you into custody soon after your voluntary surrender.

The law enforcement will then launch an investigation, which entails getting witness statements. Alternatively, you'll have to create a observe assertion In case the law enforcement decides to go forward with urgent costs.

You could be needed to take a polygraph (or lie detector) check or engage in an identification parade, wherein you are lined up with Others to permit victims and eyewitnesses to establish you, as well.

Ideally, you need to be somewhat perfectly-versed together with your rights in custody, like the suitable to make a telephone phone to All your family members or to refer to a lawyer (supplied that these acts will never inhibit the investigation). On the other hand, it is important to note that your proper to refer to an attorney ordinarily arises only following interrogations have already been carried out.

To learn more, you might want to refer to our post on police custody in Singapore.

For those who have dedicated a non-arrestable offence
With this state of affairs, even When you've got turned yourself in towards the police, you won't be taken into custody quickly.

Alternatively, the law enforcement will Assemble witness experiences and record any parties involved. Any feasible target(s) of the offence is going to be recommended to file a Justice of the peace’s Criticism for even further motion to generally be taken.

As soon as the Criticism has been received, the Magistrate will then determine what the most suitable program of action will probably be. It is only at this point that a warrant may be issued to get you into police custody, In the event the Magistrate directs the police to conduct an investigation in to the Complaint.

Is Creating a Voluntary Surrender a Mitigating Aspect?
Voluntarily surrendering towards the police demonstrates a willingness to cooperate and indicates most likely remorse and repentance. Your surrender would also allow the police to speculate their time and means into other investigations.

This may Participate in an element from the choose’s final decision and you could be presented a lighter sentence on your diploma of cooperation.

Situation research: No jail phrase following voluntary surrender
In 2018, then 24-year-old Ekawit Tangtrakarn, received a $six,000 fine for Best criminal lawyer defaulting on his Nationwide Services (NS) responsibilities.

Although Ekawit mostly lived in Thailand, he was registered as being a Singapore Citizen – earning him responsible for NS. In Oct 2015, he shed his Singaporean citizenship just after failing to go ahead and take Oath of Renunciation, Allegiance and Loyalty in 12 months of his 21st birthday.

Nevertheless, losing his Singaporean citizenship didn't decrease him of his NS obligations, and Ekawit afterwards voluntarily returned to Singapore to experience his expenses for defaulting on them. His voluntary return Hence held excess weight as a mitigating factor.

As a result, once the courtroom took other mitigating aspects into account, what could have been a most three-12 months imprisonment phrase along with a $ten,000 great, staying the utmost penalties under the Enlistment Act, became a probable nine-week jail term which was finally diminished into a $6,000 fine.

Owning your prices taken into consideration for your applications of sentencing

On the subject of your conviction so you are going through numerous rates, voluntarily admitting on your offences also stops the situation of the prosecution continuing with Each and every charge versus you individually. This enables for the possibility of you owning these kinds of expenses taken into consideration for sentencing in its place.

As a result, you could possibly experience fewer rates or maybe a lowered sentence in comparison to for those who ended up to deny or dispute the charges.

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Voluntarily surrendering into the law enforcement might verify to get beneficial afterwards with your situation. Your admission towards your criminal offense might be perfectly-acquired and function as part of your favour, lowering your punishment significantly.

For anyone who is nevertheless unsure regarding how to continue, you could interact a criminal defence attorney to seek assistance in your posture, and also clarify your legal rights. A seasoned lawyer should be able to greatest get ready you on What to anticipate if you turn you in and how to tackle any investigations completed against you.