SINGAPORE — The teen who used a combat axe to kill his 13-year-old schoolmate in 2021 is appealing against his sentence. The assailant — who cannot be named under the Children and Young Persons Act as his crime was committed when he was 16 — was initially handed a murder charge, but it was later reduced to a charge of culpable homicide. He pleaded guilty to the charge in December 2023 and was sentenced to 16 years' jail. During the appeal on July 1, the teen's lawyer, Sunil Sudheesan, told the court that the sentence was crushing. He said the teen had previously been in the «depths of depression» when he formed the irrational plan, and thus his culpability needed to be calibrated in that context. Sudheesan said that while the teen had control over his physical acts and knew that what he was doing was wrong at the time, his mental illness was what had caused him to come up with the irrational plan. Dressed in a white T-shirt, the teen, who is now 19, remained expressionless in the dock as the court heard the appeal.

Three Singaporean men were rescued in the wee hours of Monday (July 1) morning after they got lost while hiking in Malaysia.  The men, all aged 22, went on a hike with their Malaysian friend at Apek Hill in Selangor on Sunday.  Ahmad Mukhlis Mukhtar, assistant director of the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department said in a statement that they received a call for help at about 7.19pm that night, reported China Press.  They despatched five personnel for the search and rescue operation, during which they were able to keep in contact with the hikers. «All the victims were successfully located at about 11.30pm. They were safe and there were no injuries,» said Ahmad.  The men were brought down from the hill at about 1.02am and handed over to the police for further action.  AsiaOne has reached out to the Selangor police as well as the Selangor Fire and Rescue Department for more information.

Dissatisfied with the stale fish head in their curry, two diners asked for a replacement — only to find a chunk of fish scales in the new dish. A man surnamed Zeng, 60, and his wife had visited Enak Enak Restaurant at Bedok last Thursday (June 27) and ordered a serving of fish head curry, reported Shin Min Daily News. The Zengs often dine at the eatery, but it was their first time trying the fish head curry there that day. «When the dish was served, my wife found that the fish was not fresh. The curry was also cold,» he recounted. The couple alerted a staff member, who later served them a new dish. «The new fish head curry was still steaming when served, showing that it was just prepared. The fish was also fresh,» said Zeng. «However, we noticed that there were still scales on the fish head, which we found very disgusting.» The diner pointed out that chefs would understand the importance of descaling fish and speculated that a staff member had chosen not to do so. When his wife had alerted a staff member to the issue, the latter purportedly left without a word, Zeng added.

A young girl's routine trip to the toilet at SingPost Centre last Saturday (June 29) night turned into an ordeal when a pipe burst in the ceiling and ended up trapping her. Recounting the incident on Xiaohongshu the next day, her mother, Liang Jiaxin (transliteration), said they were shopping at the mall in Paya Lebar when her seven-year-old daughter rushed off to use the toilet urgently. While waiting for the girl outside the toilet, Liang noticed water dripping from the ceiling along the corridor. «The lights went out and the water started gushing down a few seconds later,» said the 35-year-old interior designer, adding that a portion of the ceiling collapsed. While Liang was on the phone with her husband, she heard her daughter yelling for help from the toilet. When she rushed inside, she saw that the girl had climbed onto the diaper-changing table to avoid the pool of water on the floor. «I grabbed her and we ran back through the 'waterfall' together,» added Liang. She said that the experience was harrowing and it made her legs feel weak after leaving the mall.

SINGAPORE - In February 2024, Nina – who is in her mid-40s – quit sex work. A month later, she started full-time work in customer service with the help of non-profit organisation Project X. A former masseuse who provided “happy endings” to clients, the single mother joined the sex trade about 20 years ago to support her child, then a toddler. Nina (not her real name) is one of those who have benefited from a Project X programme called The Next Step, which was set up in October 2023 to help sex workers looking to find alternative career pathways. It is supported by funding administered by the National Council of Social Service (NCSS). Such programmes aim to help vulnerable communities get out of a cycle of vulnerability and make better lives for themselves, said an NCSS spokesperson. There are currently 17 sex workers in their 20s to 50s with the programme. The Project X team on June 7 held a presentation on the programme at a social work conference organised by the National University of Singapore’s social work department.

SINGAPORE - Some owners of new motorcycles have been repositioning their new ERP on-board units to reduce what they described as a distracting glare from the display, or to make it easier for the units to be detected by sensors at carpark gantries. Others have chosen to do so out of personal preference, such as to accommodate other gadgets such as mobile phone holders. The repositioning of the on-board unit (OBU) is allowed if it is done by an authorised workshop, the Land Transport Authority (LTA) told The Straits Times. The OBU for motorcycles has a one-piece design that incorporates a small touchscreen and a processing unit, unlike that for cars, which has three separate components. It is part of a nationwide transition to the satellite-based Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) 2.0 system. New motorcycles registered from mid-February have come prefitted with the OBU. On average, more than 1,000 new motorcycles are registered monthly. Installation of the OBUs started for existing motorcycles in June, replacing the in-vehicle units (IUs), the OBU's predecessor.

SINGAPORE - Workers’ Party (WP) secretary-general Pritam Singh and chairman Sylvia Lim were returned to their posts at the party’s biennial conference on June 30, paving the way for them to lead the opposition party into the next general election. The party’s cadres also re-elected the other WP MPs into the central executive committee (CEC), along with former party chief Low Thia Khiang, 68, in an internal election marked by continuity. The MPs are Aljunied GRC MPs Faisal Manap, 49, and Gerald Giam, 47; Sengkang GRC MPs He Ting Ru, 41, Louis Chua, 37, and Jamus Lim, 48, and Hougang MP Dennis Tan, 54. Party sources told The Straits Times that Ms Lim, 59, was again challenged by long-time WP member Tan Bin Seng, but prevailed with about two-thirds of the vote to retain the post of party chair, which she has held since 2003. Mr Singh, 48, returned unopposed. There was a new addition to the CEC - former Punggol East MP Lee Li Lian, 46, who had stepped down from the party’s top decision-making body in 2020. The CEC lineup remains unchanged, apart from Ms Lee returning.

A speeding Volkswagen Golf crashed into a van early Sunday morning (June 30), causing both cars to flip.  A video of the incident, which happened at around 5.06am along the Tampines Expressway (TPE), was uploaded onto Facebook group Singapore Roads accident.com on the same day.  In the clip, a white Volkswsgen Golf can be seen speeding. It then crashes into a black van ahead of it, causing both vehicles to flip over.  In the process, sparks flew and the black vehicle tumbled to the side of the road.  In response to AsiaOne’s queries, the police said that on June 30, at about 5.10am, they were alerted to an accident involving a car and a van along TPE towards Changi Airport.

What's better than $5 durians? Why, free durians of course. A durian stall in Hougang held a giveaway on Thursday (June 27), dispatching some 1,000kg of Musang King and other varietals to a long line of people gathered. Within two and a half hours, all the fruits were all given away, reported Shin Min Daily News. A video posted on Lexus Durian King's Facebook page at 5.35pm that evening showed the stall packed with people. AsiaOne had previously reported that the durian stall, located at 1001 Upper Serangoon Road, would be selling premium Musang King or Mao Shan Wang durians at $5 each (maximum two per person) to Pioneer Generation customers and CHAS (Community Health Assist Scheme) card holders on June 25. Just two days later, however, they went a step further, announcing that they would be giving away one fruit plus a bottle of water each to members of the same groups as well as those belonging to the Merdeka Generation.

SINGAPORE - More than 10,000 Primary 5 pupils were treated to a spectacle on the evening of June 29 as they caught the first of four National Day Parade (NDP) National Education shows at the Padang. Coming from more than 70 schools across the island, the children cheered and waved their flags as they enjoyed a preview of the 2024 parade. Another 60,000 students will be attending the National Education shows over the next three weeks until July 20. These include current Secondary 3 students in Ministry of Education institutions, who were unable to attend in 2020 when they were in Primary 5 due to Covid-19 restrictions. Students who will be in Secondary 3 in 2025 will be invited to watch the shows in that year. Many of those whom The Straits Times spoke to before the show said they were keen to see the fireworks, a perennial crowd favourite.  «There's nothing like seeing it in real life,» said West Grove Primary School pupil Vellaichamy Gunasekaran Kirthikka, 11.  Greenwood Primary School pupil Aliya Humaira, 11, said she was most excited to see the dances and hear the songs.

A 35-year-old chef at a five-star restaurant has died only three months after getting married. He had also been promoted just four days before his death, Shin Min Daily News reported on Saturday (June 29). According to the Chinese evening daily, chef Daniel Teo's interest in F&B was piqued at an early age. His parents ran a coffee shop where he would often help out and also get to interact with the hawkers. When his parents later opened a chicken rice stall, Teo became in charge of developing the recipes and training employees. He subsequently entered culinary school to further his studies In the past 10 years, Teo worked in different different hotels and restaurant groups, rising through the ranks, reported Shin Min. It added that Teo is currently working at a five-star restaurant and had recently been promoted to executive chef just four days ago. Teo's profile on LinkedIn showed that he was the executive sous chef of JW Marriott Singapore South Beach, since May 2022.

SINGAPORE - The Singapore Democratic Party (SDP) has been asked to put up a correction notice under the law against fake news, over its statement claiming that three women were prosecuted for organising support for the Palestinian people in the ongoing Gaza war. The SDP was issued a correction direction under the Protection from Online Falsehoods and Manipulation Act (Pofma) on June 29 on the instruction of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). On June 27 and June 28, the SDP had put up a statement on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok commenting on the charges brought against three women who were allegedly involved in organising a procession without a permit along the perimeter of the Istana, which is a prohibited area. In its statement, the SDP said the three women - Mossammad Sobikun Nahar, 25, Siti Amirah Mohamed Asrori, 29, and Annamalai Kokila Parvathi, 35 - were prosecuted for organising support for the Palestinian people and in doing so, expressed views the Government did not agree with.

SINGAPORE – Hong Lim Park was awash in hues of pink on June 29 as thousands turned up for the annual Pink Dot SG rally at the Speakers’ Corner. This year’s rally – the 16th edition since 2009 – sought to highlight discrimination against the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) community and called on participants to envision a more inclusive Singapore. This is the second Pink Dot SG rally since Singapore repealed Section 377A, the law that criminalised gay sex. Hundreds of participants penned messages to Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, who was sworn in on May 15, to share their concerns on the challenges LGBTQ+ people face and their hopes for a more respectful and accepting Singapore. A number of politicians were spotted at the event, including Mr Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development and for Culture, Community and Youth.  Ang Mo Kio GRC MP Darryl David, Nee Soon GRC MPs Carrie Tan and Derrick Goh, Workers’ Party MPs Jamus Lim, He Ting Ru and Louis Chua, as well as Progress Singapore Party’s Lim Cher Hong and Jeffrey Khoo also showed up dressed in pink.

An unexploded World War II relic was safely removed from a construction site in Ang Mo Kio. The police told AsiaOne they received a report at around 5.45pm yesterday (June 28) about the war relic discovery along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 1 towards Marymount Road during excavation works. «The Singapore Police Force worked with the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit and the item was established to be a World War II unexploded ordnance,» they said. The police added that it was moved away for disposal after it was assessed to be safe for handling. «No danger was posed to the public,» they said. Last September, a WWII bomb was discovered at a construction site in Upper Bukit Timah Road, which led to the evacuation of thousands of residents living in the vicinity.

Two drivers found themselves at an impasse when neither gave way to the other while trying to switch lanes, and their vehicles ended up colliding. Dashcam footage of the collision was posted to Facebook group Singapore Road Vigilante on June 27. In the video, which is slightly longer than a minute, the bus and car are stopped at a traffic light side by side along the two leftmost lanes of a road identified in the comments as Loyang Avenue. The car is seen signalling left from the beginning. As the light turns green and the two vehicles start moving, the bus signals right and starts to move closer to the car. However, neither of the two vehicles slow down to let the other cut in. As a result, the two vehicles collide near a fork in the road after the bus veers into the car's lane, in a supposed attempt to avoid turning left. Both drivers are seen exiting their respective vehicles after a few seconds and their interaction was not caught on video.

After taking a pilates class in the vicinity, a woman returned to the car she had parked at a building in River Valley Road only to find that its wheel had been clamped. Ms Elaine Ong received a shock, as she had only been gone for an hour, and she had got access to the building’s carpark after passing through a gantry. To have the clamp removed from the wheel of her car, the 29-year-old was instructed through a slip issued by management corporation strata title (MCST) 325 - the Chiap Chuan Building’s management office - to pay $400. Ms Ong said about the incident that took place on May 24 that she was told by the building’s management that her car’s wheel was clamped because she had parked illegally within the estate. This was because the vehicle’s rear wheel had mounted the kerb next to the designated parking space. Photos she shared with The Straits Times on June 24 showed her car - with a clamped wheel - parked within a parking space, albeit with its rear left wheel merely touching the line. “It was so frustrating. There was no negotiation, and the building’s management refused to release my car until I made the payment.

A customer who ordered a bowl of fish soup found an unexpected ingredient in his dish: a plastic clothes peg. The 46-year-old clinic assistant, who wishes to be known as CT Zu, posted a picture of his soup to Facebook Group Complaint Singapore on Thursday (June 27). «Found this clip in my tom yum fish soup, bought from Cantine at Jurong Point,» read the caption. A large, pink plastic clothes peg, which seems to have been fished out of the soup, can be seen in the picture. These clips are also used to attach order slips to containers to inform the kitchen of the order and removed before the food is packed. Speaking to AsiaOne, Zu said that he ordered three portions of fish soup from the food court operated by Kopitiam on Wednesday evening via Grab. Upon opening one of the tom yum fish soups, he was shocked to discover a whole plastic clip inside. «I was agitated, disgusted and annoyed. An angry man is a hungry man,» said Zu. «Luckily I ordered other food as well.» According to a picture of Zu's order receipt seen by AsiaOne, one bowl of tom yum fish soup cost $7.50 and his total order came up to $28.10.

When it comes to extremism and acts of terrorism, Singapore has always taken a zero-tolerance approach, said Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam.  He was speaking to reporters on Friday (June 28), just days after the arrest of eight suspected extremists in Malaysia earlier this week and the May 17 attack by radicalised individuals on Ulu Tiram Police Station. The May 17 attack resulted in the deaths of two policemen, and left one injured. The alleged attacker, Radin Luqman, 21, was killed in the ensuing firefight. Describing the Ulu Tiram attack as «brazen», Shanmugam noted that Luqman had arrived at the police station carrying a bag filled with metal sheets, and was wearing a bulletproof vest. «Obviously, the attack seems to have been pre-planned,» he said. Shanmugam added that Luqman, his father Radin Imran Mohd Yassin, 62, and brother are reported to be ISIS supporters. And that the act was likely inspired by the Islamic State (ISIS).

The decomposing body of an 80-year-old woman was found inside her flat on Wednesday (June 26), days after residents noticed a foul smell wafting into their homes. The discovery was made in a ninth-storey flat at Block 245 Jurong East Street 24 at around 5pm, reported Shin Min Daily News. A 34-year-old resident surnamed Chen, who lives in the unit directly above on the tenth floor, said that his family started noticing an odour from outside his bedroom window last Sunday. «A neighbour on our floor lives alone, so we were worried something might have happened to him,» he said. «But when we saw that he was safe and sound, we thought the smell might be from a rotting animal carcass.» When the smell worsened over the next two days, he contacted the Jurong-Clementi Town Council, whose staff visited the block on Monday and Tuesday but could not pinpoint the source of the stench. «They went into my bedroom and noticed the foul odour too,» Chen added.

SINGAPORE — Gas and electricity tariffs will rise for the next three months. From July 1 to Sept 30, those supplied by grid operator SP Group will see a 0.3 per cent increase in electricity tariffs compared with the previous quarter, the group said in a statement on June 28. For households, this amounts to a tariff of 29.88 cents per kilowatt-hour before goods and services tax, up from 29.79 cents currently. The new tariff is still one cent lower than the first quarter of 2024. With the new tariff, the average monthly electricity bill for families living in four-room Housing Board flats will rise by 35 cents before GST, increasing from $118.03 to $118.38. The hike is due to an increase in energy costs, by 0.09 cents per kWh on average, said SP Group. These costs, which are paid to power generation companies, are adjusted quarterly to reflect changes in the cost of fuel and power generation. City Energy, the producer and retailer of piped gas, said in a separate statement on June 28 that town gas tariffs will increase by 0.03 cents per kWh over the same period, also due to higher costs.

She's a navy officer now, but things might have turned out quite differently had she continued her passion for the arts. The Commanding Officer of RSS Indomitable Major Jaime Liew had originally dreamed of chasing a career in the arts - and she's thankful that she didn't, she shared in an interview with the media on June 20. «I was interested in doing art-related stuff… visual art, painting, drawing, dance, performing arts,» the 32-year-old said. «But I don't think that I would have been good enough,» she admitted, adding that it was good that she got pulled into the navy before she «embarked on a career that might not have worked out». Entering the navy wasn't all that easy, however, as her father was «surprised» by her decision to join the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). «So my dad took a while to come around to it, but he eventually gave me his full support,» she said. «I don't think that I would have had so much confidence when going through basic military training - which was honestly at the deep end of the pool -  if my classmates from junior college and family members hadn't all [given me their support].»

A construction worker had a close shave with death after he was struck by a bus on Thursday (June 27) and dragged under for a few seconds. Miraculously, he managed to get to his feet after that. The accident happened around 5.20pm at the junction of Anson Road and Palmer Road. In a video uploaded to Facebook group SG Road Vigilante, the worker, wearing a bright green reflective vest and hard hat, is seen walking to the bus lane and placing a cone. He then turns around to walk back to the side of the road, where there were construction works near a bus stop. However, he fails to notice that an SMRT bus is turning in from his left. The bus rams into him, and he falls under the left front wheel and is dragged under the carriage for a short distance. He manages to sweep his legs out before the rear wheel strikes him. The bus comes to a halt at the bus stop a few metres away from where the worker lies. A man in a red reflective vest and another worker in a green vest help the man get to his feet.

A resident in Yishun is so fed up with a woman feeding the birds in his neighbourhood that he has installed a CCTV camera outside his flat to catch her in the act. The man, surnamed Chen, told Shin Min Daily News that over the past year, the woman, whom he said looks to be in her 60s, has been tossing slices of bread onto the grass patch near Block 148 Yishun Street 44. She used to only feed the birds occasionally, but has been throwing down bread at 5am almost every day in the past month, Chen said. «I've seen over 50 birds at the grass patch,» lamented the 49-year-old. This is despite a signboard put up by the Nee Soon Town Council at the location informing the public to report bird feeders and that the act is an offence. According to the Wildlife Act, those who feed birds and other wildlife can be fined up to S$10,000. Reporting the woman to authorities is what Chen plans to do. Last week, he purchased a camera for about $40 and installed it at his front door, with the intention of sending in the footage of the woman to the authorities.

A Singaporean man was shocked and betrayed when he reportedly woke up to his Thai girlfriend and various valuables missing from his hotel room. He then reported the incident to Huay Kwang Police Station in Bangkok on Tuesday (June 25). The man, whose identity has not been released, met the Thai woman online and chatted with her for four years before travelling to Bangkok to meet her in person, reported Thai media outlet Thaiger. The couple had dined together before returning to the man's hotel room for the night. The next morning, the Singaporean reportedly woke up to find that his girlfriend had disappeared along with his Rolex watch worth about 1.5 million baht (S$55,300), cash, and designer clothes, reported Thai media outlet Channel 7 HD News. He believed that he had been drugged and robbed by the woman, he told police. After looking through the hotel's CCTV footage, the police identified the Thai woman as 33-year-old Kittiyaporn. She reportedly has three outstanding arrest warrants for theft from another Bangkok police station and the Mueang Pattaya Police Station.

SINGAPORE - A construction worker was killed and another was injured in an accident on Thursday (June 27) at a worksite for the upcoming Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link station in Woodlands North. The workers, aged 48 and 49, were injured by falling steel reinforcement bars that were being installed for the station's foundation at around 9.30am. Both workers were taken to hospital, where the younger man later died. Police investigations are ongoing, but based on preliminary findings, foul play is not suspected. The Land Transport Authority (LTA) said the steel bars had swayed before falling. It added that it takes a serious view of safety incidents, and a safety timeout has been called to review and further enhance the safety process. Meanwhile, the authority is working with the main contractor, Japanese firm Penta-Ocean Construction, and the subcontractor involved, Interno Engineering, to assist the family of the dead worker. This is the third death of a worker at an LTA worksite in seven months.