SINGAPORE - The arrest of former Singapore Idol winner Hady Mirza has shocked the entertainment community here, even as many noted the 38-year-old had distanced himself from the music industry which showered him with accolades and adoration.
The authorities have not provided details of Hady's arrest, but a report by The New Paper on July 31 said Hady, who was spotted in the Changi Prison Complex, was arrested for drug offences.
He is believed to have been hauled up at a land crossing in Singapore, and is currently in a Drug Rehabilitation Centre.
Home Team agencies conduct checks on passengers and vehicles at the checkpoints to prevent attempts to smuggle in undesirable persons, drugs, weapons, explosives and other contraband. Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) officers are stationed at the land crossings and conduct specific checks when a suspected drug offence is involved.
Hady first came into the spotlight as the winner of the second season of reality television singing contest Singapore Idol in 2006. In the following year, he beat regional contestants and won the Asian Idol competition in Jakarta.
He released two albums and won several awards at regional Malay music awards show, Anugerah Planet Muzik and was the biggest winner with three awards in the 2011 edition.
In 2013, he left the entertainment industry and became a youth mentor, forming FRHM Youth, which organises religious classes and sports activities.
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He started an F&B business selling snacks and beverages in 2016 and was last in the news after a post about the star becoming a Grab driver went viral on social media last year (2017).
Winner of the first Singapore Idol show in 2004, Taufik Batisah, who is also signed with Hady's former artiste management arm, ArtisteNetworks, was surprised to read about his arrest.
They had performed together and even released a joint album, Kenangan Di Hari Raya (Memories Of Hari Raya), in 2011. But they lost touch a few years ago.
He said: "I only learnt of (the arrest) today when I saw the news," he told The Straits Times. "The last time I bumped into him was at a pop-up store event at Downtown East during Ramadan.
"It was really good to see him after a long while. No matter what, I pray for the best for him and his family and I do hope everyone will too."
Mr Yusnor Ef, president of Perkamus, the association of Malay singers, composers and professional musicians, was "saddened" by the reports of Hady's arrest.
"He is very talented both as a singer and songwriter. I haven't spoken with him in a few years but my impression of him is as someone of good character and I always thought he had a bright future ahead of him."
A spokesman for ArtisteNetworks, a subsidiary of Hype Records, said that the company has not been in touch with the singer since his contract with them ended "many years ago".
He added: "During the contractual period, we have always known Hady to be a good-natured individual. Like everyone else, we are dismayed to learn about his situation from the media."
Friends and relatives of Hady Mirza were kept in the dark about his recent drug arrest, with only his mother and wife aware of his secret.
They were shocked to read about the 2006 Singapore Idol winner's trouble with the law when The New Paper broke the news yesterday.
Some relatives who spoke to TNP on condition of anonymity said they then got in touch with Hady's mother, Madam Mardiana Ahmad, 62, who confirmed the arrest.
More details have emerged about the arrest of the 38-year-old singer-turned-entrepreneur-turned-Grab driver, whose real name is Muhammad Mirzahady Amir.
He is understood to have been caught at a land immigration checkpoint for offences involving the drug marijuana, and was later sent to the Drug Rehabilitation Centre (DRC) in the Changi Prison complex.
A female relative told TNP yesterday: "Only his mother and wife knew that he had been arrested. They didn't tell anyone else in the family.
"When we called his mother, she told us that it was true, and reassured us that he was fine and would come out okay."
Madam Mardiana told relatives that she did not want to speak to the media.
TNP understands that she is living in Johor Baru, Malaysia, with Hady's Malaysian wife, Ms Nurjannah Nur Wahid, 25, and they do not have plans to come to Singapore.
Hady had been spending time on both sides of the Causeway before his arrest.
He was featured numerous times in the media over the years after winning the second season of Singapore Idol in 2006.
He went on to become the first Asian Idol in 2007, and released two albums in 2006 and 2009, with the first achieving platinum status within four days of its release.
He also co-founded local group FRHM Youth in 2013, an organisation that promotes Muslim education and way of life among young people.
But he was struck off as the group's director in 2014, the year that he married his wife in Johor Baru in a wedding attended by about 2,000 guests.
A partner of FRHM Youth told TNP yesterday that Hady had cut off involvement with the group and its partners after choosing to focus on his business.
Hady went on to start a home-based chilli tempeh snack business under the name Tempting Trading in 2016.
A business search shows the company licence was cancelled after its business registration was not renewed in May this year.
A report in January this year revealed that Hady had become a Grab driver.
When TNP visited his condominium unit in Sengkang yesterday, it appeared that no one was there.
One of his close friends in the entertainment industry said the community was still supportive of him.
She said: "He used to make mistakes in his younger days, but then in 2011, he told me he was going to turn his life around.
"I saw for myself how he made a 180 degree change, giving back to the community and putting others before himself."
She added that the community will continue to encourage him when he comes out of DRC.
"I believe that it was in a moment of weakness that this happened, and we will encourage him and help him overcome his challenges when he comes out."
It was previously reported that those caught for drug consumption are sent to DRC for treatment and rehabilitation.
DRC inmates can be detained for up to three years and will not have a criminal record when they are released.
This article was first published in The New Paper. Permission required for reproduction.
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