Changing the Narrative: An Ex-Offender’s Journey into Entrepreneurship

By Teo Hsin Yeong
Hsin Yeong is a final year English Language and Linguistics major with a passion for the Arts, especially music and theatre. As a final year undergraduate, he makes it a point to live his university life to the fullest, looking for new experiences while maintaining his grades...or at least attempting to. He enjoys singing, climbing, and recently picked up varsity cheerleading to achieve his goal in doing a backflip.

Richard in his younger days.

Having been in and out of prison since the age of 16, Richard Tan would have been regarded by many as a hopeless ex-convict. However, with determination, love for his family and God's strength, he has defied the odds stacked against him and is now a director of a construction company. We had the privilege to talk to Richard as he shared with us his transformative journey from a drug trafficker to a man of God. 

Richard was no stranger to God, as his sister had been sharing the Word with him ever since he was little. However, he ignored his sister’s teaching and was drawn into a world of alcohol, smoking, and drugs while still in his adolescence. By 16, he had resorted to theft and robbery among other criminal offences in order to sustain his vice-filled lifestyle and was eventually arrested. This was the first of 7 incarcerations in Richard’s life. After his sixth incarceration, he was determined to never go back to prison and absconded while on bail, fleeing to Malaysia. There, he was roped in to work for a drug syndicate as a co-ordinator, disseminating drugs to Singapore through his contacts. 

“The people I deal with will end up with very, very long jail terms, or end up in the gallows...I didn’t care. I just wanted the money.” Despite knowing deep inside that he was ruining the lives of many, likely ending some of them, Richard continued living in luxury while keeping his role as a drug trafficker a secret from his then-pregnant wife. 

2 years into his operations in Penang, Richard was apprehended by the Malaysian authorities. In an attempt to pressure him into giving up the identity of his boss, the authorities detained both him and his wife. Initially, he resisted their attempts in hopes that his boss would buy them off, but it never happened. It was only after his wife had given birth in Malaysian lock-up that he finally relented, and questioned his manhood. 

“When I knew about this, I couldn’t take it. How can I call myself a man when I cannot even take care of my family?”. After the ordeal, Richard knew he had to change, for the good of his family. He was then sentenced to serve 2 years in a Malaysian prison before subsequently serving another 7 years in Singapore. 

The birth of his son behind bars gave Richard newfound resolve to change his ways and better himself for the sake of his family. This would not have been possible if not for the many people that supported him in his rehabilitation, especially his sister. She visited him regularly when he was incarcerated in Malaysia, took care of his wife, and supported his family both financially and through the many letters she wrote. One letter in particular cut his heart deeply: “My dear brother, do you know that after you brought so much shame and misery to the family, do you know why we did not give up on you? It is because I have the great love of Jesus”. He wondered how such love was possible, when he himself knew he would have given up if he were in her shoes. Could the love of God really be that powerful? It was the harsh yet powerful words from his sister that further spurred Richard to come out a changed man. 

He attended chapel services in Changi  prison and was inspired by the many counsellors there who, themselves, had a long history of crime and yet turned their lives around with the power of Christ. “They are also ex-prisoners, they changed and came back to serve as counsellors...I started to think, if these people can change...I also think I can”. 

After 7 years, he was released and could finally embrace his wife and 7-year-old son, a moment full of joy and regret, having missed much of his son’s childhood. “I got no chance to change his diapers even, no chance to feel him”. And so, he began rebuilding the life he had lost behind bars. 

Having found his faith in Christ, and with a strong desire for change, he sought to find employment and build his career from the ground up, despite having no academic qualifications. “Lord, if I can be a mee pok seller or lorry driver for the rest of my life, I will be thankful and happy, I will hallelujah.” 

Fortunately, his sister and her husband hired him as a lorry driver, which allowed him to earn an income while he attended night classes for 2 years to learn how to be a builder. For the 2 years after his release, Richard worked tirelessly to provide for his family while equipping himself with the skills needed to build his career. By his third year he was a project manager, and every year since then he climbed up the ranks, taking on more responsibilities. Just six years after his release, he was in charge of a few workers and a lorry, taking on small building projects. Within that time, he and his wife were able to secure a four-room flat and renovate it with the help of friends and family who witnessed his transformation.

Richard with the staff from his construction company.

Fortunately, his sister hired him as a lorry driver, which allowed him to earn an income while he attended night classes for 2 years to learn how to be a builder. For the 2 years after his release, Richard worked tirelessly to provide for his family while equipping himself with the skills needed to build his career. By his third year he was a project manager, and every year since then he climbed up the ranks, taking on more responsibilities. Just six years after his release, he was in charge of a few workers and a lorry, taking on small building projects. Within that time, he and his wife were able to secure a four-room flat and renovate it with the help of friends and family who witnessed his transformation. Following his release and newfound faith in Christ, his life has indeed been filled with many blessings. Yet, this period was also fraught with hardships and grief, putting his faith in God to the test. 

Not long after securing a home, Richard’s wife was diagnosed with cervical cancer. Despite going for treatment and removing the tumour, her cancer relapsed only a year later. In her distraught state, she asked “Why I see you change, I waited for you to come out, we purchased a house and everything is good already, Why do I need to go?” Richard was unable to answer her. He could do nothing but watch as his wife grew weaker, and within weeks passed away at the age of 32. For months, he wrestled with God in his lorry, looking for an answer and questioning his belief. Friends also questioned his decision to follow Christ, seeing the pain and sorrow it brought him. “I thought fairytales should have a good ending right, but mine is not”. 

Despite the immense grief he experienced, he still came to believe in the one true God who reigns sovereign over our lives, and ultimately chose to continue trusting in Him. “I still strongly believe He is the true and living God that dictates our lives. So I choose to continue to follow Him. No doubt, I don’t have an answer to why my wife left me so early, until now. But I choose to believe in Him because I strongly believe He is the creator of the universe.” 

Richard pictured with his son, his current wife and daughter.

Twelve years after his release, Richard is now the director of his own construction company. He also leads cell group regularly, holding them in his office. He is also happily married to his current wife, whom he met 3 years after his late wife’s passing, and is blessed with a daughter. He has finally built the life he had longed for behind bars, and glorifies God for all these accomplishments. “Everything comes by the grace of God. I just guai guai (obediently) follow Jesus.” He believes that he would not have come as far as he did if not for God’s mercy, power and love. The success he has attained both in his personal and professional life is not of his own strength, but of God’s. “If I boast, I am boasting for Jesus.” 

Richard is more than familiar with the struggles that come with a criminal past, and acknowledges that determination and willpower is not enough to change. Support from the community and loved ones, such as from his sister and late wife, provides immense help to ex-offenders who desire to reintegrate into society and rebuild their lives, just as how Richard had done. Most importantly, he emphasises the reliance on the transformative power of God, because without it, any effort to change would be in vain. “Determination alone is not enough. You need God, together.” 

Ex-offenders are often perceived to be undesirable for employment, often under the assumption that they will never be able to fully change their ways, or are simply not as capable as those with a clean slate. Richard’s story proves that such assumptions could not be further from the truth, especially when one relies on God and follows Him. 

“I just want to encourage my new brothers that, so long as your attitude and mentality are renewed and you follow God, there is always a possibility that we can make it. But we cannot give up on ourselves.” 

Richard’s remarkable life story is an inspiration to all, not just to those with a checkered past, for all of us have fallen short of the glory of God. His story, along with the stories of many other ex-offenders, is a testament to the limitless power of God, and that all are capable of change if only we rely on and trust in Him.