There was a park a mere five-minute stroll away. It was deserted and silent at this time of night. She found a bench near the pond and sat with her head leaning against him. Krison circled his arm around her. They sat for a few silent moments before he whispered, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Jessica shook her head. If Krison chose to believe she was a victim, so be it. But she did not want to have to lie. “Why are you up at three in the morning?”

“I was helping out at Migrant Workers Count Too. They were in dire need of manpower so I volunteered.”

“What’s happening there?”

“It… It has to do with the Little India riot last Sunday.”

Jessica could tell Krison was hesitant. “I’m okay. Tell me.”

“Over the last few days, police have charged into the various dormitories and hauled many workers to the police station for interrogation. They wanted to identify those who were involved in the riot.”

“I know. It was in the papers.” Jessica nodded. “A total of one hundred and twenty-two culprits were apprehended.”

“The problem is, many of these hundred and twenty-two are not guilty.”

“How would you know?”

“The team at Migrant Workers Count Too has been interviewing the migrant workers to get their side of the story. The turnout last night was crazy, it being Saturday night and all. They were queuing around the block. By 3am we had to stop and ask them to come back the next afternoon. And they were telling us a different story.”

“What was it?” Jessica’s curiosity was piqued.

“Many of these migrant workers are uneducated men from small villages in India and Bangladesh. They have an innate fear of those in authority. Some of them sat terrified throughout the police interrogation and felt that their only way out was to provide some names. So they simply gave names of co-workers they were not on good terms with.”

“Oh my God!” Jessica gasped, horrified.

“Among those who were accused, many could not prove they were somewhere else during the rioting. So they were incarcerated and will be charged along with the actual rioters. Their friends came to us for help. We have been taking their statements in the hope that we can petition for them when the time comes.”

“But couldn’t the police sort out the real culprits among the hundred and twenty-two?”

“The riot has shaken the entire nation. The police are under tremendous pressure to produce results. I suspect they are just happy they arrested the hundred and twenty-two so quickly.”