Yishun man admits to making etomidate-laced pods for vapes in first S'pore Kpod conviction

A 41-year-old man has pleaded guilty to producing etomidate-laced pods for sale to e-vaporiser users.

- Shaffiq Alkhatib

This case involves the first conviction in court linked to Kpods.

Mohammed Akil Abdul Rahim was caught in his Yishun flat in December 2024 with 26.4g of a white powder that contained enough etomidate to produce over 70 Kpods.

On Aug 13, the Singaporean, who is currently in remand, pleaded guilty to multiple charges, and most of them involved vaping-related products.

Akil had told investigators that before he committed the offences, he went to a Johor shopping mall in October 2024 and met a man known only as "Joe", who offered him a job of preparing etomidate-laced vape pods for customers in Singapore.

Health Sciences Authority (HSA) prosecutor Yang Ziliang said that Joe would arrange for items such as bottles of "e-liquid", empty pod casings, pod covers and etomidate powder to be sent to Akil's home via courier.

Akil, who lived with his mother, had to mix the e-liquid with the powder and fill the empty pod casings with the mixture.

The filled pods would then be kept at the flat in preparation for upcoming orders.

Joe would share Akil's mobile number with potential customers, who would contact Akil directly to order the vape pods.

Akil was paid $10 for every pod prepared and provided to customers.

Joe would either pay him directly in Johor or through a delivery person.

Court documents stated that Akil agreed to be part of the plan even though he knew vape products were illegal in Singapore.

In the early hours of Dec 11, 2024, he received a WhatsApp message from somebody known only as "Beast" who wanted to order pods.