BOSTON, Oct. 2, 2019— Suffolk County District Attorney John P. Pappas this week welcomed a visiting prosecutor from Singapore who will spend the next six months observing some of Suffolk County’s most experienced prosecutors as they work.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Ang Feng Qian of Singapore’s Attorney-General’s Chambers will complete a six-month rotation with Pappas’ office observing criminal proceedings in the District, Superior, and Appellate courts. Qian’s first three months with the office will be spent within the Homicide Unit, followed by three months assigned to the office’s Special Prosecutions Unit, which prosecutes financial and internet-based crimes as well as offenses committed by public employees.

Throughout those assignments, Qian will also learn about Pappas’ Victim Witness Assistance Program and community engagement initiatives. The Suffolk DA’s office was a leading force behind witness protection legislation passed in 2006 and the creation of the state’s Witness Protection Fund. Since the fund’s creation, Suffolk County has consistently utilized more of the available funding to protect vulnerable witnesses than any other DA’s office in the state. In addition, Pappas’ office this year secured more than $426,000 in grant funding to provide services to survivors of homicide and victims in unsolved shootings. Newly funded services include language assistance services and financial assistance for survivors traveling to Boston in order to attend homicide trials.

“In and out of court, victims are at the center of everything we do as a modern prosecutor’s office,” Pappas said. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to share with other agencies the innovative work we’re doing here in Suffolk County to better serve the victims, witnesses, and communities that rely on us every day – as well as the opportunity for the exchange of ideas and knowledge that make this type of international partnership so fruitful.”

The partnership was facilitated by the National District Attorneys Association, which recommended the Suffolk DA’s office as a host last year, and the Singapore Attorney-General’s Chambers, which is funding it.

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All defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.