SINGAPORE — A 37-year-old man was hauled to a district court on Thursday (Oct 31) and charged with four counts of selling unregistered health products, including nitrazepam tablets and codeine syrup.

Kervin Ang Chin Wee allegedly supplied them at the popular Geylang Lorong 9 Fresh Frog Porridge coffee shop on April 11, at about 7pm.

It was not stated if anyone bought them from him. 

Nitrazepam is a sedative drug commonly prescribed for severe insomnia, while codeine cough syrup is commonly misused by people seeking a narcotic high.

Court documents submitted by the Health Sciences Authority showed that the Singaporean is accused of having these products that evening in order to sell them:

• 350 “Epam® Nitrazepam BP 5mg” tablets

• 26 “Codeine Phosphate 30mg” tablets containing nitrazepam

• Three bottles of unlabelled brown liquid that contained codeine and promethazine — an antihistamine used to treat nausea and sleep troubles

• Two bottles of unlabelled brown liquid containing codeine, promethazine and dextromethorphan — a medication used to relieve coughs

Ang told the court that he intends to plead guilty to the charges. He will return to court on Nov 14.

If convicted under the Health Products Act, he could be jailed up to two years, or fined up to S$50,000, or both, for each charge.