The government will give a one-off property tax rebate of up to 20 per cent for owner-occupied residential properties in 2025, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) on Friday (Nov 29). Owners of HDB flats will receive a 20 per cent rebate, while owners of private residential properties will get a 15 per cent rebate capped at $1,000.  In addition to the rebate, the Annual Value (AV) bands of owner-occupied properties will be raised come Jan 1, 2025 — a move announced during Budget 2024.  The AV is the estimated rent a property can fetch in a year if rented out, and is also used to calculate property tax. Owner-occupied properties have lower tax rates.  The lowest AV band threshold will be raised from $8,000 to $12,000, while the highest threshold will see an increase from over $100,000 to over $140,000. Corresponding adjustments will be made to bands in between. With these measures, all owner-occupied HDB flats and 90 per cent of owner-occupied private residential properties will pay less property tax in 2025. 

SINGAPORE — The prosecution described the case as a «deeply troubling and reprehensible act of exploitation». On Oct 10, 2023, an elderly man approached a woman who has Down syndrome and molested her after offering the victim $2 to lure her away from the public eye. Deputy Public Prosecutor Adelle Tai said that the 24-year-old woman was an «acutely vulnerable» victim who has an IQ of 40. According to the Institute of Mental Health website, an IQ of 70 or below is indicative of intellectual disability. On Nov 28, District Judge John Ng said that the case involved a «vulnerable person who preyed on a vulnerable victim» and sentenced wheelchair user Omar Aziz, 70, to 18 months' jail. He had earlier pleaded guilty to a molestation charge. Details about the victim and where she lived at the time of the offence cannot be disclosed due to a gag order to protect her identity. The DPP said that the woman was walking to an MRT station in the northern part of Singapore at around 4pm when Omar, who was then on a personal mobility device, approached her. He offered the victim $2 and asked her to follow him to a secluded corner.

An elderly resident in Yishun has been ordered to clear the multitude of items he had placed in the common areas of his block, following a complaint over public safety. The man, surnamed Yang, lined the common corridor on the ground floor of a block at Yishun Street 81 with potted plants, boxes and water bottles. According to Shin Min Daily News, there were over 100 potted plants as well as boxes and pails placed around the block.  Yang, 73, told the Chinese evening daily that all the items belong to him, and his neighbours have no objections about the placement of his belongings.  He lives on a higher floor in the same block.  The resident said that he took care to adhere to the fire safety guidelines, which requires a 1.2m-wide escape passage along the common corridor.  The boxes at the back of the block are used to collect rainwater to water his plants, he explained. To prevent mosquitoes from laying their eggs in the water, he covers the pails and rears fish in those that are uncovered.  Regarding his plants, Yang said he's been growing java apples for the past four years. 

A 66-year-old man has been arrested for the alleged murder of a 67-year-old woman. In a press release, the police said they had received a call for assistance at a residential unit along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 6 at about 1.25am on Friday (Nov 29). Officers found the woman lying motionless inside the flat, and she was pronounced dead at scene. The man was subsequently arrested at the unit. Preliminary investigations revealed that both parties are known to each other, the police added. The man will be charged with murder in court on Saturday. If found guilty, he could face the death penalty. Police investigations are ongoing. A resident of the block told Lianhe Zaobao that they had heard sounds of a quarrel on Thursday evening. Shortly after the commotion died down, many police officers visited the unit. lim.kewei@asiaone.com

Some patrons of a coffee shop in Yishun got upset over an employee dusting the ceiling while they were eating. A man surnamed Zhu told Shin Min Daily News that he was dining last Saturday (Nov 23) at the coffee shop at Block 504 Yishun Street 51 when he noticed an employee sweeping the ceiling with a broom. «I was about to start eating my noodles when they began cleaning,» said the 61-year-old taxi driver  «I felt it was unhygienic and went to alert the coffee shop's manager. They only cordoned off the area and continued to clean the ceiling.» As he was eating, however, dust particles began to fall from the ceiling. Zhu said he approached the coffee shop's manager once more, but his concerns were dismissed. He subsequently reported the incident to the authorities. Speaking with Shin Min, the coffee shop's manager surnamed Wu said that the ceiling is cleaned once a month and the area is usually cordoned off with tape. «Since there aren't many patrons in the afternoon, cleaning works are carried out,» Wu, said.

From Jan 1, 2025, manufacturers and suppliers dealing with industrial machinery as well as combustible dust will have to comply with enhanced workplace safety and health (WSH) measures, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Friday (Nov 29). This follows recommendations put forward by the inquiry committee probing the Tuas explosion which killed three workers and injured seven others in February 2021. According to the committee's findings, the unsafe use of a mixer machine had caused it to explode, igniting the combustible potato starch powder used in the workshop and leading to subsequent flash fires. To prevent similar incidents, the Multi-Agency Workplace Safety and Health Taskforce (MAST) will introduce enhanced control measures to ensure the safe use of combustible dust — materials which can disperse in the air and ignite when in contact with a heat source. Manufacturers and suppliers must label associated hazards on packages or containers of combustible dust and communicate to workers on safe use.

SINGAPORE — A man was sentenced to 21 weeks' jail on Nov 28 after he forged Grab receipts on more than 460 occasions and work-related timesheets in eight instances, to dupe his then employer into disbursing more than $24,000 to him. Muhammad Fariz Shaik Sha Marican, 33, also made false medical certificates and an electronic letter purportedly from the Singapore Armed Forces, causing the Ministry of Health (MOH), where he worked as a temporary staff member, to excuse him from reporting for work. On Nov 12, he pleaded guilty to two forgery charges, and two other similar charges were considered during sentencing. Recruitment firm Persolkelly (PSK), which worked with MOH to provide employees, had hired Fariz, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Kelly Ng in earlier proceedings.  In November 2021, PSK deployed him to work at MOH to support its Covid-19 operations. The ministry later checked Fariz's annual leave balance in April 2023, as it wanted to convert him to a staff member.

SINGAPORE — Veronica Shim Wai Han, a former Singapore Airlines flight stewardess-turned-private banker of almost 20 years' standing, broke down in court on Thursday (Nov 28) as she testified that at least two investors in businessman Ng Yu Zhi's $1.5 billion nickel trading scam «had died directly or indirectly because of pressure from this case». Prosecutors alleged that Ng's Ponzi scheme, which promised attractive profits from nickel trading was «pure fiction» that duped 947 investors of almost $1.5 billion, of which more than $481 million was channelled to Ng's personal bank accounts and used to finance his lavish lifestyle. The first prosecution witness to take the stand, Shim, the former chief executive of fund manager Envysion Wealth Management (EWM), and her company are named as victims in two cheating charges against Ng, the alleged mastermind of the scam.

SINGAPORE — In what he described as the lowest point in his life, a cyber-security specialist stole a few thousand dollars from a savings account meant for his daughter so that he could keep gambling. The 35-year-old, who gave only his surname as Sow, peeped to find out his wife's password for the account under her name. «I stole the money to top up my betting account,» he said. He had lost at least $500,000 from football matches since getting addicted to illegal gambling sites in his teens and ended up owing both legal and illegal moneylenders. Still, the father of three young children continued. «I was betting every day — in the toilet, at work and on the bus or train.» A National Council on Problem Gambling survey of more than 3,000 Singapore residents aged 18 and older found that more people, like Sow, have gambled on illegal online sites. The percentage of those who said they have done so rose from 0.3 per cent in the 2020 survey to one per cent in the 2023 poll. But the probable pathological and problem gambling rate remained stable at around 1.1 per cent of those polled in the 2023 survey, which was released on Nov 28.

SINGAPORE – Five Cabinet ministers were among more than 100 recipients across 31 government agencies who have received e-mails demanding payment over doctored images since Nov 26. These images are supposedly screenshots from videos where victims’ faces are superimposed onto those of individuals in compromising situations. The e-mails all have the same contents and images, with the only difference being the face of the victim. In a statement on Nov 28, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) said 12 male political office-holders were affected, in addition to public officers. The five Cabinet ministers are: Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat Culture, Community and Youth Minister Edwin Tong National Development Minister Desmond Lee Social and Family Development Minister Masagos Zulkifli Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office Maliki Osman Also affected are senior ministers of state Janil Puthucheary, Tan Kiat How and Koh Poh Koon; ministers of state Alvin Tan and Muhammad Faishal Ibrahim; and senior parliamentary secretaries Baey Yam Keng and Eric Chua.

SINGAPORE — For more than 1.5 years, Eden Tan has had to reach for a pail each time it rains because water would start dripping from the ceiling of her Serangoon Housing Board flat. Shortly after Tan moved into the four-room flat on the top floor in 2022, she noticed that the ceiling would leak when it pours. Roof repair works by the town council have not fixed the issue, which has become worse amid the recent rainy weather. It has caused mould to grow inside one of the bedrooms, and parts of the plaster on the ceiling to crumble off. «I always have a pail in the affected room to catch the murky water, but it gets full in a few hours. This entire ordeal has been very distressing for my family and we are desperate for it to be fixed,» said the 36-year-old housewife. Tan, who lives in the flat with her husband, five-year-old son and eight-year-old daughter, is one of at least four households in the same block that have had to live with leaky ceilings. She told The Straits Times she is worried that the leaks could potentially be dangerous if water drips onto electronics at home.

When two Health Sciences Authority (HSA) officers showed up at one man's door and asked to enter his home for an inspection, he refused to let them in.  The man then posted a series of six videos of the encounter named «uninvited guests» on his TikTok account Rapperboya. His first video, which was posted on Nov 15 and garnered over 2.1 million views, shows two plainclothes HSA officers at his door showing their IDs and asking to search his home for e-cigarettes and vaporisers. However, the man insists he will not open the door unless he is shown a warrant. In a second video, two police officers are seen accompanying the HSA officers as they return to the man's home. After explaining the nature of their visit, which was shown in subsequent videos, the man agreed to co-operate with the investigation and let the officers into his flat. Before entering his home, one of the officers asked the man: «Would you like to declare any vapes?» To which he replied: «No.»

Some residents in Punggol were startled by the sight of bloodstains at the staircases and void deck on Tuesday (Nov 26) evening.  A fight allegedly broke out among a group of youths at Block 622B Punggol Central at about 8pm, reported Shin Min Daily News.  A resident surnamed Huang told 8world that he was waiting for the lift when he saw three men and one woman at the void deck.  One of the men was bleeding profusely from the neck, and his blood was dripping onto the floor.  «I got a little nervous because I didn't know what happened to him,» said Huang, who estimated the men to be in their 20s.  The resident saw the group walking towards the nearby coffee shop, but did not know where they were headed.  Huang said he's lived in Punggol for 14 years but has not seen anything like this happen before.  A resident, who only wanted to be known as Mrs Ye, told Shin Min that she spotted an ambulance and police cars parked below the block. Several police officers were also seen walking around the area, before cordoning off a sizable area of the void deck.

The police are looking into a series of fires — suspected to be the result of arson — at a Yishun executive condo construction site. The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) told AsiaOne that eight fires broke out in Yishun Close from Nov 20 to Nov 27. The fires mainly involved construction materials and furniture at various locations within the site and were swiftly extinguished either by firefighters or construction workers. SCDF's preliminary investigation findings indicate that the fires were intentionally started. Two people were conveyed to Singapore General Hospital for smoke inhalation in one of the fire incidents. There were no other reported injuries. A video shared by TikTok user Jayfit on Nov 22 shows one of the fires, saying that it took place at the construction site of North Gaia, an executive condominium. https://www.tiktok.com/@jay_absbus/video/7439618596235676935 In a comment, Jayfit claimed he also witnessed a fire at the worksite the day before. Responding to AsiaOne's queries, the police confirmed that reports were lodged regarding the matter and investigations are ongoing.

SINGAPORE — Car owners who left their doors unlocked at the Suntec City carpark saw various items including luxury watches and more than $25,000 in cash stolen. The thief, Mohamed Rasid Mohd Ali, 56, was sentenced to 26 months' jail on Wednesday (Nov 27), after he pleaded guilty to three theft charges. State Prosecuting Officer Ting Nge Kong said one of the victims — a 40-year-old Singaporean — had parked his Porsche in the basement one carpark at about 3.30pm on May 13, 2024. Rasid, who had gone there intending to steal from unlocked vehicles, noticed that the Porsche was not locked.

SINGAPORE - A Chinese national has been arrested in Pahang for kidnapping and other offences, after a man reported that his 15-year-old daughter had failed to turn up at her school in Singapore. In a media release, Johor police chief Commissioner M. Kumar said the girl, also a Chinese national, was found following a raid in Kuantan, Pahang, on Nov 26. He added that the student had passed through Singapore’s Woodlands Checkpoint into Malaysia on Nov 24. The girl’s father, a 48-year-old Chinese national, made police reports after his daughter failed to turn up for school in Singapore on Nov 25. The Singapore Police Force said it received a missing persons report involving the 15-year-old girl at about 2.15pm on Nov 25. Preliminary investigations indicated that the girl voluntarily left Singapore unaccompanied before the report was made. According to media reports, the girl’s father alerted police in Johor on Nov 26, leading to them tracking her down and raiding the location in Kuantan on the same day.

Six months after her spine was fractured in the SQ321 turbulence incident, one Malaysian passenger is getting back on her feet. 23-year-old Hong Manying told Shin Min Daily News on Wednesday (Nov 27) that she was flying home from London to celebrate her mother's birthday in May. The Singapore-bound plane, however, encountered severe turbulence while flying over Myanmar. Hong was flung out from her seat. Recalling the incident, Hong said she hit her head on the overhead compartment before she fell to the ground.  «I was terrified, but I tried to remain calm. My entire body was in pain but I told myself not to move to avoid further injury,» she added.  This caused her to suffer a spinal fracture which nearly left her paralysed.

An elderly woman who was adopted and taken to China is searching for her biological family in Singapore. Kang Yu'e had been adopted by her father's sworn brother when she was a year old, reported Shin Min Daily News. Her 26-year-old grandson told the Chinese evening daily that she only realised she was adopted when she got married. Kang was very angry at her adoptive father, Zheng Shui Gen, for keeping the origin of her birth a secret for such a long time, said her grandson. She then cut off all contact with Zheng and started using the name her biological parents gave her. Before Kang stopped speaking to her adoptive father, he had given her the address of her biological family in Singapore so she could get in contact with them. Kang and her biological family would communicate via letters until they lost contact in 1985. The last known address of her family in Singapore is Block 32, Jalan Rumah Tinggi in Bukit Merah. According to her grandson, Kang was born in Singapore in 1953 and has seven siblings in total: An older brother, four older sisters, a younger sister and a younger brother.

One man now has a happy wife and a happy life after winning US$1 million (S$1.3 million) in a lucky draw.  Balasubramanian Chithambaram won the grand prize last Sunday (Nov 24) in a lucky draw held by Mustafa Jewellery. He visited the store in Little India and spent $6,000 on gold chains for his wife about three months ago.  The annual draw event was held at the Civil Service Club @ Tessensohn. Customers who spent at least $250 were eligible for the grand lucky draw, according to the store's website.  Chithambaram, a project engineer who has been working in Singapore for 21 years, was in a state of disbelief when the lucky draw's host called him to deliver the good news. In the video call, the teary man said: «Today is also my father's fourth death anniversary. It's a blessing.»  He added that he would tell his mother about the windfall and also spend some of the money giving back to the community as a token of appreciation for the years he worked in Singapore. At the event, several other customers who won the store's monthly draws also walked away with prizes of US$5,000.

A personal mobility device (PMD) user suffered minor injuries after he was hit by a truck in Ubi on Tuesday (Nov 26) afternoon. Footage of the accident, shared on the SG Road Vigilante Facebook page, shows the elderly man riding his PMD across the road just as a truck drives down the exit slope of an industrial compound at Ubi Road 1. As he reaches the middle of the road, the truck bumps into the PMD, causing him to topple. He props himself against the road with his right arm and struggles to free himself. The truck then reverses, causing the PMD rider to fall onto his back. He subsequently sits up as the truck driver and another person go to his aid.