The Singapore Prison Service (SPS) said in a statement on Sunday (17 Feb) that Mikhy Farrera-Brochez sent an email to several government authorities and media agencies containing a list of 13 HIV-positive inmates – including himself – who were schedules for a medical check-up on 23 March 2018 in the Changi Prison Complex.
SPS said that Brochez appeared to have secured unauthorised possession of a copy of the list prepared by Parkway Shenton who is SPS’ appointed medical service provider. SPS is in the process of reaching out to the individuals on the list to inform them that their information has been illegally disclosed.
“We have worked with MOH to provide additional support to those who require it. SPS has lodged a police report and investigations are ongoing,” the prison service added.
In response to TODAY’s queries, Parkway Shenton’s chief executive officer Edmund Kwok said: “We are aware of the incident. We are assisting fully with the authorities and unable to comment further as investigations are ongoing.”
Since the list appears to include Brochez’s name as well, he must have obtained it either during or after his imprisonment. Brochez served a 28-month sentence which ended in April 2018 for various fraud and drugs-related offences including lying about his HIV status to gain an employment pass in Singapore. He was deported upon release and is now believed to be residing in the US.
When MOH first announced the massive data leak in January 2019, they said in a statement that they received information that Brochez was in possession of the confidential information back in 2016 which he obtained from his partner Ler Teck Siang. Ler was head of the ministry’s National Public Health Unit from March 2012 to May 2013 and said to have had access to the HIV registry. The leak consisted of confidential information regarding 14,200 individuals diagnosed with HIV up to January 2013. Since finding out about the leak, MOH insists that they have updated their security protocols and strengthened their safeguards surrounding diseases registries.
But if that is indeed the case that Brochez got the earlier information via his partner, how did Brochez get his hands on this newest list which includes his name after his imprisonment?
Last week, Brochez published on Facebook several allegations against Singapore authorities relating to the HIV Registry data leak. Among the claims made, Brochez said that he was sexually assaulted in prison which resulted in him contracting HIV in 2018, not earlier as the authorities asserted.
Facebook has since removed Brochez’s accounts and posts.
TOC has reached out to the relevant parties including MOH for comment.