The Police have arrested a 37-year-old man for his suspected involvement in a case of e-commerce scam.

On 2 September 2022, the Police received a report from a victim claiming that he was cheated by an online seller who had advertised a Rolex watch for sale on Carousell. The victim was allegedly cheated by the seller into making a deposit payment totalling $2,600 through bank transfer to the seller. After receiving payment from the victim, the seller failed to deliver the watch and delayed refunding the deposit.

Through investigations, officers from Bedok Police Division established the identity of the seller and arrested him on 6 September 2022.

Investigations against the subject are ongoing. The offence of cheating, under Section 420 of the Penal Code 1871, carries an imprisonment term of up to 10 years and a fine.

The Police would like to advise members of the public to take the following precautions when making online purchases:

1. If the price is too good to be true, it probably is. Purchase only from authorised sellers or reputable sources, especially for high-value items.
   
2. Opt for buyer protection by using in-built payment options that release payment to the seller only upon delivery. Whenever possible, avoid making advance payments or direct bank transfers to the seller as this method does not offer any protection.
   
3. Scammers may entice buyers to contact them directly through messaging platforms such as WhatsApp or WeChat by offering a better or faster deal if bank transfer payments are made directly to them. They may also use a local bank account or provide a copy of a NRIC/driver’s licence to make you believe that they are genuine sellers. Do not fall for it!

For more information on scams, members of the public can visit scamalert.sg or call the Anti-Scam Hotline at 1800-722-6688. Anyone with information on such scams may call the Police hotline at 1800-255 0000 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/iwitness.

PUBLIC AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
07 September 2022 @ 6:00 PM

42-year-old Myanmar national Maung Maung Aung Soe Thu, initially sued the Public Utilities Board (PUB) after his bicycle tyre got stuck in a drain cover and threw him off his bicycle.

He had wanted to sue PUB for $578,000 in damages.

However, on 7 September, both sides decided to settle on the second day of the hearing, agreeing to settle the lawsuit without either sides being found liable for the damages.

The settlement conditions are being kept confidential and not made public.

Maung is expected to return to his home country of Myanmar tomorrow (9 September) after the conclusion of his case against the PUB.

Didn’t see the drain cover

Maung said in his written statement to the court on 6 September that the dried leaves on the road obscured his view of the gap in the drain cover, and that he didn’t see the drain cover as he had turned his head to check for traffic.

His lawyer also added that the gaps in the drain were parallel to the road and inconsistent, and insisted that PUB be liable for the accident.

No complaints since 2000

PUB’s lawyers argued that they had no complaints about the drain covers along that stretch of road since it was constructed in 2000, and that in the last 10 years, there were only 12 verified accidents caused by drain covers.

And of the 12 incidents, only 5 involved cyclists (including Maung) and 4 out of the 5 cyclists sustained minor injuries.

They also pointed out that Maung had neglected his own safety by cycling on the road instead of on the park connector.

60-year-old Ang Siew Wah, was sentenced to 9 weeks imprisonment on 7 September for breaching her Covid-19 quarantine order back in 2021.

She pleaded guilty to one count of exposing others to the risk of infection, and 4 other charges were considered during her sentencing.

She had left her home to collect her 4D winnings, go shopping and receive her vaccination.

What happened

Ang received a call on 23 July 2021 from a Certis Cisco call agent, informing her about her quarantine on behalf of MOH.

Ang confirmed that she had received a notification from MOH about her quarantine order from 22 to 29 July, because she was a close contact of a Covid patient.

She then asked the agent about her upcoming appointment for her Covid vaccination that was supposed to be on one of her quarantine days, and was told to reschedule it by the officer.

Ang then told the officer, “then don’t need to buy medicine lah, don’t need to eat lah, that means cannot go out cannot eat lah.”

When told that she had to quarantine herself in a hotel, Ang shouted at the officer “YOU ARE KIDDING ME, I DON’T LIKE TO STAY HOTEL, I WANT TO STAY AT HOME.”

Ang was then reportedly called by 2 agents multiple times because they couldn’t hear her properly, and sometimes she would tell them that she had no time for them because she was working.

The agents then told her that she was under quarantine and cannot work, Ang then told them “I need money to eat, who wants to support me?”

The agent then told her that if she wanted to quarantine herself at home instead of going to a hotel, then her husband can’t leave the home either.”

Ang then shouted at them “HELLO! YOU ARE NONSENSE AH! IF MY HUSBAND CANNOT GO OUT, HOW DO WE EAT? CALL MOH, CALL GOVERNMENT TALK TO ME OK!”

Another agent then called Ang and told her the same thing, and Ang then reiterated her same stand and said that she was working.

Collect 4D winnings

Ang left her home on 23 July after receiving phone calls from the officers, and was outside for 7.5 hours from 10.20am to 5.45pm, going to Heartland Mall to eat, window shop, as well as collect her 4D winnings.

She then returned home via a bus that same evening, and was not “working” as she had claimed to the officers on the phone.

She then continued to breach her quarantine over the next few days, travelling to Ang Mo Kio via bus to buy lunch and dinner on separate occasions.

She also took a bus on 25 July to Teck Ghee Community Centre for her Covid-19 vaccination after being told not to do so by the officers.

On 28 and 29 July, she travelled by bus to buy food and also didn’t return to work during her quarantine.

A fire broke out on 6 September at a HDB flat at Bedok North, while the family was at a funeral of a family member downstairs.

Shin Min Daily News reported hat the fire took place on 6 September at about 1.30pm, at Block 201 Bedok North Street 1.

The affected HDB unit on the 4th storey was inhabited the deceased family member, her son Mr Wu, their maid and another tenant.

The family was attending to Wu’s mother’s funeral downstairs (she had passed away the day before), when joss papers used to cover up an altar purportedly fell onto a burning candle, according to Wu.

An elderly neighbour rushed down with her walking stick to tell the family about the fire, and Wu’s brother-in-law then ran up to the home and saw the unit in flames.

He then heard an explosion as he was about to enter the unit, followed by the sounds of glass breaking, and a wave of heat then overwhelmed him and he was left with no choice but to close the door.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force later arrived and put out the fire with a water jet, and preliminary investigations showed that the cause of the fire was an open flame that was left unattended in the living room.

No injuries were reported in the unfortunate incident.

25-year-old NUS graduate, Luke Levy, previously held an anti-death penalty sign during his graduation ceremony and was under investigation by the police after a police report was lodged.

He has since revealed on Twitter than there will be no further action taken against him by the police, and that he has received an advisory, which he described as being a “metaphorical finger-wag”.

His latest comments on Twitter

I was investigated by the police for holding an anti-death penalty sign during my graduation ceremony. End result: NO. FURTHER. ACTION. No offence, no warning, nothing. Just a metaphorical finger-wag to “refrain from such conduct”.

Here may be a few reasons as to why: — The auditorium is a private place that needs to be rented out, and you need to be invited/a student/faculty/ in order to attend. — It was fully indoors (yes, THAT matters…)

This may set a precedent for how to do protests/public assemblies in Singapore. If you’re SGrean, within a private space, where everyone attending is an invited guest, held fully indoors (heck the indoors clause alone MAY BE enough, but idk for sure)… I guess it’s aight.

NGL, waiting for months, anxious about police action was kinda brutal. But I knew that this got people talking about the death penalty. How it’s unjust. How the state murders instead of cares. And how to push for action. That eased my anxiety. No regrets with what I did. Never.

Also I HAVE to thank Too Xing Ji, the lawyer who helped me through this, making laws CLEAR to me (which is SUCH a help as I get lost in legalese easily), for making representations to AGC, for advising me on police procedures etc. Seriously, can’t thank him enough.

So what next? Simple, keep fighting against the death penalty. Killing others is not a clear deterrent of crime. It does not address the root cause of ANY crime, no path for rehab, no path for acquittal even. We killed (at least) 501 in the past 30 years. We can’t have any more.

Oh, i should clarify, I’m CELEBRATING this, because there was no charges. The need for police to investigate this is ridiculous yes, plus the intimidation of ‘don’t do it again ah’ in the advisory is unsettling, but how I protested the death penalty is not an offence! yey

I was investigated by the police for holding an anti-death penalty sign during my graduation ceremony.

End result: NO. FURTHER. ACTION. No offence, no warning, nothing. Just a metaphorical finger-wag to "refrain from such conduct". pic.twitter.com/inwWgt8KUO

— Luke 💙💜 (@AngMohSnowball) September 6, 2022

Recap

A 25-year-old student from NUS, Luke Levy, who held up an anti-death penalty sign during his graduation ceremony, is being investigated by the police following the lodging of a police report.

The Singapore Police Force confirmed that they received a police report regarding the incident, but stopped short of revealing who or when the report was made, according to TODAY.

Levy has posted a series of tweets documenting his actions at the graduation ceremony on 11 July.

Here is what he said on Twitter

“Gather round, folks. Here’s a story on the sign I held on stage at my graduation, calling for the abolition of the death penalty in Singapore. And how NUS tried their hardest to erase it.

Gather round, folks. Here’s a story on the sign I held on stage at my graduation, calling for the abolition of the death penalty in Singapore. And how NUS tried their hardest to erase it.

BTW, the death penalty should be abolished. It ignores how deliberate state violence and ignorance forces many into poverty and crime. It unjustly kills the poor. It is not an effective deterrent of ‘crime’. And there’s no acquittal for those found innocent after execution.

When I went up on stage, I unfolded this sign from my gown pocket. It read “Abolish the death penalty. No to state murder. End poverty, not life. Blood on your hands”. I held that sign as I walked on stage, took my on-stage photo, and left the stage, sign in hand.

It was a small act that I knew could inspire others to take similar action. To stand against violence, to fight for those disproportionately affected by the death penalty. To recognize how power drives violence. To stand in solidarity, love & empathy with everyone.

An act NUS wants to erase. NUS took down the live recording of my commencement ceremony, only to reupload it later with an edit. If you go to around 1:14:54 in this video, you’ll see the most obvious jump cut in the world, omitting my time on stage. https://youtu.be/uRxP_xRhjlU?t=4494…

In the official stage photograph (that I paid for, for my own private display), the photo studio actually took time to try and edit the words on my sign out. You can still make some words out though, thank goodness they didn’t do a good job with it.

NUS (and others) went through the EFFORT to crop the sign out. To erase the message from existence. To pretend nobody who studied there thinks this way and is taking action on this. To say ‘all is well’ by excluding something uncomfortable to their institution.

Thing is, NUS could’ve just… not acknowledged it. But by taking the EFFORT to do that, they’re trumpeting that they would silence anything that threatens their power, even if it’s a call against violence.

It makes them complicit in maintaining hierarchies of power in society. Hierarchies that neglect, that exploit, that turn people against each other, that kill. They’re an institution with state ties, after all. They dare not go against what that grants them academic power.

I gave my space on stage to Kalwant. To Norasharee. To those on death row now. To those already executed. A small, A4-sized disruption, to acknowledge that even taking the stage is a privilege built on a system of violence that oppresses many in society.

Apparently, for an institution that thrives on ideas, papers and works from their staff and students (many of whom I loved to learn with), a single sheet of paper is too extreme of a push for change for them to live with, to the point where it becomes a need to redact it.

I’d just like to end this by echoing (& tweaking) a quote from the speaker at that same ceremony, Georgette Tan. “Don’t be afraid to use your voice. Know your worth. Be strong. Stand up for yourself, and [especially] others around you.” https://youtu.be/uRxP_xRhjlU?t=1908… “

Source: Luke Levy on Twitter @AngMohSnowball

An accident took place near Block 846 Yishun Ring Road on 4 September at about 2.55pm, involving a ComforDelGro taxi and a GrabFood delivery rider.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force confirmed the accident via a statement, saying that they were alerted to the traffic accident.

The Singapore Police Force also confirmed the accident, saying that they were alerted to it at about 2.53pm, and added that a 61-year-old male rider suffered minor injuries.

The injured food delivery rider refused conveyance to the hospital.

Rider had rear-ended taxi

ComfortDelGro’s group chief branding and communications officer, Tammy Tay, said that the taxi was stationary when it was rear-ended by the delivery rider.

She added that the taxi driver was uninjured and that ComfortDelGro is currently helping the police with their investigations.

Facebook user Lo Chi Ming shared how he was waiting for his 10-year endowment plan to mature by the end of the year.

However, his policy suffered a loss 3 months before maturity, and he said that when he contacted Great Eastern’s customer service, all her got were templated replies.

Here is what he said

GREAT EASTERN SG – Terrible Return Of Investment Projection

Happily waiting for my 10yr GE Policy to mature end this year, but heart sank after reading their letter of revising the payout downward recently (just 3 months from maturity). Projection update issued last year July was still on track.

Just puzzled that why a 10yr endowment like policy would suffer a lost only at the last 3 mths before maturity. What about those “reserves” that they held back over those good years? Are projections on GE policies no longer reliable or are they riding on the perfect excuse of an economy downturn to pay Customer less?

Have been corresponding with their Customer Service the last few weeks, but all I get were templated replies (did not even bother to format the cut and past reply properly before sending out), playing the broken record game. Also don’t know what kind of calculator GE uses that derived the 255% bonus (did a calculation, interest given was only about 2% per annum). All the “we care” and core values of integrity are just empty words. Please be wary of their terrible projects and last minute “crawl back” if you are considering buying a policy from them.

Just disappointed with such a old brand. Wonder if MAS is aware or monitoring such malpractices to protect the citizens.

Netizens’ comments

• I was the victims of aia policy. Many years ago. So don’t buy aia. Fincial guardian plans. Now i only buy income. Fell sick n claimed. No problem face.
• Pretty much all these packaged endowment plans are like. It will be hard to even demand an annualized performance from the fund. It is somewhat like a unit trust ….except that the trust portion is questionable.
  These days, many are posting that they more or less just gotten back the guaranteed amount, nothing more. Better just close your eyes and throw into any stocks….even with the downturns, the return seems way better.
• That’s how the insurance agents can go overseas for grand MDRT parties, and carry branded goods.
• So far my policies from NTUC much better than GE. Also cashed out my GE last time at a loss
• The $$$ might have gone into financing their fanciful MDRT parties and fast cars?