A British ex-pat on trial in Singapore for refusing to wear a mask on the subway has been remanded into a mental hospital after declaring the court hearing 'ridiculous.'
Benjamin Glynn, originally from Yorkshire, berated the judge on Thursday calling the proceedings 'disgusting' and 'preposterous' as spectators cheered in the public gallery.
The 39-year-old was originally arrested for failing to wear a mask on a subway on May 7, but has been further charged for refusing to wear a mask at his first court appearance last month.
Prosecutor Timotheus Koh told the court he had communicated with Glynn's friends and family who spoke of a 'marked change of behaviour' since the pandemic started.
'The accused's behaviour in court speaks for itself,' Mr Koh said.
Glynn shot back: 'My mind is crystal clear. I'm wide aware. I'm enlightened. Just because I refuse to be a slave, you accuse me of being a lunatic.'
Throughout the hearing, Glynn declared that he was a 'sovereign' and denounced the legitimacy of the court, saying he would neither plead guilty nor not guilty.
Benjamin Glynn, 39, went viral on the internet in May after he was filmed refusing to wear a mask on the subway in Singapore
Glynn also lost a new job he was due to start in the UK and fears he could have to spend as much as 12 months on bail before his trial
The married father-of-two further claimed that he had been 'kidnapped and abducted' and 'tortured physically and psychologically.'
He says he spent 18 days 'being tortured in Changi Prison'.
Glynn urged the judge to return his passport so that he could travel home to Britain to see his wife and children.
'They've stolen my passport, my God-given right to travel,' he said.
'I can't believe this has been going on since the 8th of May,' Glynn said, according to Channel News Asia.
'It's so straightforward it's so clear that this sham of a case should be dropped.'
He added: 'I'm disgusted with how the Singapore judicial system has treated me.'
At this point a woman got up in the public gallery to clap and cheer.
Glynn has been in custody since July 19 after his £2,700 bail was revoked by the judge.
At the start of proceedings, Glynn introduced Abdul Rashid Abdul Rahman as his legal representative.
Mr Rahman has also acted as Glynn's bailor, according to The Straits Times, and was turned away from the court previously for inappropriate attire.
District Judge Eddy Tham blocked Mr Rahman from representing Glynn because he was not legally qualified.
Mr Rahman told the judge that he was an 'ambassador-at-large and advocate of Kingdom Filipina Hacienda' and had every right to defend his 'sovereign compatriot.'
Judge Tham replied that this was 'not the position' of Singaporean law.
The prosecutor went on
