Murder in Singapore? A family’s international quest for answers

I mention this story with some hesitation, because it is unresolved, and because the local family at the heart of it still has no answers about the death of their son in Singapore in June 2012. But the family of Shane Todd has publicized his death — which Singapore officials initially labeled a suicide — to get answers. Maybe you can help. At the very least, the Todd family’s story may help you write your stories of international crime and intrigue with greater accuracy and greater sensitivity.

According to the Kalispell Daily InterLake, Shane Todd was a software engineer for a company in Singapore, getting ready to return to the U.S. He raised questions about the company’s activities, and even told his parents that he feared his work might jeopardize American security. His work involved gallium nitride technology. A hard drive they found in his apartment after his death — apparently overlooked by officials who seized his computer and other belongings — reportedly suggests he was right to raise questions. The State Department and both Montana’s Senators have become involved, and the case has been publicized in the New York Times and elsewhere. Singapore officials have promised to reopen the investigation.

(I’ve linked to the latest local story as of this writing, in late April; Google Shane Todd for updates. And keep a Montana family in your hearts.)

(An inquest began in Singapore in mid May. Here’s the Daily InterLake’s account, from AP.)

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