substance use<\/a>.\u00a0He also added that he is now completely clean and no longer uses any substances.<\/p>\nRecalling the day of his arrest on April 19, 2022, around 8am, he said:\u00a0\u201cI was getting ready all my paraphernalia to get high. For those of you who don\u2019t know what paraphernalia is, it\u2019s basically the tools that you use alongside your substances to help you get high.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said he went about his routine as \u201cnormal\u201d, adding with a chuckle that it was \u201cnormal\u201d for him at the time, before putting his items away in a cupboard and had breakfast.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was after finishing his breakfast that Shawn heard loud, persistent knocks on his front door.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn that moment, my heart sank, because I knew that it was not going to be a makcik trying to sell me kueh at 8am in the morning with that kind of aggression,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Shawn also shared that about a month before his arrest, he had a feeling he would be caught for substance abuse \u201csometime in the future\u201d, but said he was \u201crebellious and complacent\u201d and ignored it.<\/p>\n
Looking through the peephole, he recalled seeing a group of people with lanyards, and immediately deduced they were CNB officers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI started panicking a little bit, and keep in mind, I was very high. I went back to my room and I didn\u2019t know what to do. I wanted to take my paraphernalia and substances and put it in a different room, but then I was thinking, \u2018What if some of my family members get implicated as well?\u2019\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
He then left the items in his room and opened the door, recalling the CNB officers entering his home and one pushing him so hard he landed \u201cin the middle of [the] living room\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When asked if he knew who they were, Shawn replied: \u201cI have an inkling.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was brought into his room and was asked by the officers if he had anything to declare. He admitted to having a vape, but after further questioning revealed he also had substances in his drawer. The officers then searched the drawer, found the items, and handcuffed him.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy first reaction was – handcuffs are really, really heavy,\u201d he recalled.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think because I cooperated, they didn\u2019t turn my entire room upside down. They weren\u2019t throwing stuff here and there, they carefully went through everything to make sure everything was still in an organised state after they left.\u201d<\/p>\n
Shawn also said that as the officers took him away, he asked them to lock his main door as his mother and sister were asleep and he did not want them to be woken up or see him in handcuffs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey very nicely obliged, to my surprise,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
In a second part of his video, Shawn revealed that while he was in the vehicle with the officers, one of them struck up a conversation with him, asking about his interests and hobbies. The officer then asked if he had a girlfriend. When Shawn said no, the officer replied: \u201cThat\u2019s good, because your six months inside is going to fly by.\u201d<\/p>\n
That was the moment Shawn knew things were serious.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He recalled: \u201cI actually had the physical sensation of a bottomless pit in my stomach because that was the moment I actually realised that I was in trouble. Not when they were at the main door, not when put handcuffs on me, but at that very moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
He was later taken to Bedok Police Station, where he underwent a urine test that, unsurprisingly, returned positive results. Shawn was placed in a holding cell for the night. There, he met another man who had gone through a similar experience twice and shared insights on prison etiquette and stories.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis information was invaluable because it really became the foundation for my entire experience inside,\u201d Shawn added. He also recalled the night as difficult, grappling with anxiety and uncertainty about what would happen next.<\/p>\n
In an attempt to cope, he decided to try meditating, hoping to show the CNB, through the CCTV, that he was a \u201cgood, kind, person\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t even actually meditating. I just closed my eyes, got into the position [and just sat there]. Obviously, this was not going to help one bit. It doesn\u2019t matter if you are the person who discovered penicillin, the law will come down hard on you in Singapore if you choose to break it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The next morning, Shawn was allowed to call his mum, which he recalled as an emotional moment.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think everything leading up to that point, my entire life actually, I\u2019ve always felt like a disappointment. And having the consequence of actually being under the custody of the police was a stark realisation that I had f***** up,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
His mother did not reprimand him, but instead showed him support. He was later informed by an officer that he would be sent to rehab, though he said he did not realise at the time that this meant prison.<\/p>\n
When asked how the officers were alerted in his comments, Shawn replied that it was never disclosed to him.<\/p>\n
He, however, revealed that he was charged under the Drug Rehabilitation Centre regime, a primarily rehabilitation-focused pathway for individuals caught for drug consumption rather than a criminal conviction.<\/p>\n
Many viewers expressed pride in him for getting clean and for bravely sharing his story so openly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n