SINGAPORE — A driver who played «blocking and braking games» with a motorcycle and went at speeds of up to 160kmh on an expressway showed no remorse despite causing the death of an 18-year-old pillion rider on the motorcycle.When his friend said he was crazy to play with someone's life, the driver replied that the victim «deserved it» as she had pushed his limits.Jarrett Tee Lee Kiat, 30, was sentenced to five years and eight months' jail on June 27 after he pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of Leann Lim Jia Le.Lim, an 18-year-old student, was the pillion rider on the motorcycle when Tee swerved into it, causing Lim to be flung onto the road.The collision also left the motorcycle rider, Kovan Tan, 27, injured with multiple abrasions and a right-hand laceration.Apart from his jail term, Tee was handed a 10-year driving ban for his offence.He was a National University of Singapore student at the time of the incident, as well as a part-time chef and social media influencer.

Close to a million Singaporean HDB households will receive rebates on their utility and conservancy bills in July.Eligible households will receive U-Save and Service & Conservancy Charges (S&CC) rebates in July as part of the permanent GST Voucher (GSTV) scheme and the enhanced Assurance Package, said the Ministry of Finance (MOF) in a statement on Monday (June 30).Households will receive rebates according to their HDB flat type.For example, households living in a one- or two-room flat will receive $190 worth of U-Save and one month of S&CC rebates.The latest batch of rebates will be the second quarterly disbursement for Financial Year 2025, and are provided to help Singaporean households with their cost-of-living concerns, said MOF.Eligible households do not need to take any action and will have the rebates automatically credited to their utilities accounts by SP Services and their town councils respectively.MOF said that households whose members own more than one property are not eligible for the rebates.Households with no Singaporean flat owner or occupier will also be ineligible.

Households in Singapore will see a decrease in electricity and gas prices from July to September 2025, due to lower energy and fuel costs.The electricity tariff will fall by 2.3 per cent or 0.65 cent per kilowatt hour (kWh) before GST as compared to the previous quarter, said SP Group on Monday (June 30).City Gas, the producer and retailer of piped gas, said in a separate statement on the same day that the gas tariff will drop from 22.72 cents per kWh to 22.28 cents per kWh due to lower fuel costs as compared to the previous quarter.With the new tariff, the average monthly electricity bill for families living in a four-room HDB flat, for example, will decrease by $2.36 before GST.

Three persons were arrested after their vehicle collided with a lorry while being chased by police on Sunday (June 29).Responding to queries from AsiaOne, the police said that officers were patrolling along Syed Alwi Road at around 5.45am on Sunday morning when they saw a car parked haphazardly along the road.They proceeded to check on the driver, but the 25-year-old male driver drove off, leading officers to give chase. He was subsequently arrested.While officers were arresting him, one of the passengers drove the car away, the police said.The car was later located along Syed Alwi Road, but sped away again when the passenger-turned-driver spotted the police, eventually colliding with a lorry and coming to a stop.Police found substances suspected to be controlled drugs and drug paraphernalia in the car.The 25-year-old man was also wanted by police for prior traffic-related offences and was taken conscious to the hospital, and was later arrested for suspected drug-related offences.

New jobs will emerge but there will always be jobs for drivers in the transport sector, even as Singapore is set to introduce autonomous vehicles, said Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow.On June 27, Siow announced plans to roll out self-driving buses in Punggol by the fourth quarter of 2025, during a working visit to Guangzhou, China, raising concerns about job security for drivers.«The role of the driver may change,» he said, adding that it is the role of the Government, together with the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), to «help these drivers make the best of these new opportunities».According to Siow, the role of a driver is likely to change with the introduction of autonomous vehicles.«(It) may well be you have somebody on board that does different things,» he said.Instead of driving, Siow said that one might help elderly passengers with boarding, helping to load luggage, or serve as a tour guide.He highlighted the importance of taxi and private hire drivers in Singapore's current ecosystem, and said that the Government will «make sure that they are well taken care of» amid the proposed developments.

The first Johor Bahru-Singapore Rapid Transit System (RTS) Link train was unveiled during a ceremony at the Singapore Rail Test Centre (SRTC) in Tuas on Monday (June 30).Officiated by Singapore's Acting Minister for Transport Jeffrey Siow and Malaysia's Minister of Transport YB Anthony Loke, the ceremony highlighted the shared commitment by the neighbours to deliver cross-border rail project.Both ministers also emphasised that the project aims to significantly enhance connectivity.The RTS Link will be served by eight trains, with each train consisting of four cars and a capacity of over 600 passengers. The trains are manufactured by Chinese firm CRRC Zhuzhou Locomotive. The first train has already been delivered to Singapore in April and has undergone preparatory works for On-Site Integrated Testing at the SRTC.Once fully operational by December 2026, the 4km shuttle service from Singapore's Woodlands North station to Johor Bahru's Bukit Chagar station will be able to accommodate up to 10,000 passengers per hour in each direction at peak capacity. 

SINGAPORE — An industrial estate and a row of warehouses at Depot Lane in Bukit Merah will be vacated by the fourth quarter of 2025 to make way for housing.JTC Corporation, which manages the industrial estate, said the plot will be returned to the state for future residential development, in response to queries from The Straits Times.Under the Urban Redevelopment Authority's master plan, the Depot Lane industrial estate is part of a 7.3ha site zoned for residential use. Its plot ratio, which determines the intensity of the development, is subject to detailed evaluation.The industrial estate, consisting of about 240 units across eight blocks, was built in the 1970s. Six adjacent warehouses, which make up the rest of the plot, are owned by the Singapore Land Authority (SLA).JTC said tenants were told about the redevelopment plans for the area in 2018 and were offered replacement factory spaces at JTC Space @ Ang Mo Kio or Bedok Food City.Western food stall Original Botak Jones took to social media in April to announce the closure of its outlet in the Yue Hua coffee shop at Depot Lane on June 22 due to redevelopment of the area.

Mr Rizwan Habib, who stole money as a child to feed his mother's drug habit and spent close to 21 years in jail across seven jail terms, celebrated a series of remarkable milestones in the past year.The 43-year-old, who took his PSLE, O levels and A levels behind bars, completed his social work degree at the Singapore University of Social Sciences in April.In May, he started his «dream job» as a social worker with the Industrial and Services Co-operative Society (Iscos), helping ex-offenders to turn their lives around.He also moved into his first home, a two-room Housing Board flat, in November 2024.Mr Rizwan, who was once homeless and spent a large part of his life in jail, said: «I never had a place to call home before. It feels surreal.»A traumatic childhoodMr Rizwan said that when he was about five years old, his father walked out on the family.His mother was an unemployed drug addict, and as an only child, he had to fend for himself from a young age.

Continuing to criminalise drugs is «the right policy» for Singapore, said Coordinating Minister for National Security K Shanmugam, who was speaking on the sidelines of a community event in Nee Soon on Saturday (June 28).He told media that the government is looking at «possible outflows» to Singapore with cannabis set to be recriminalised in Thailand.The nexus between drugs, crime and terrorism needs to be looked at, he continued, touching on Singapore's increased security posture amid rising tensions over the Iran-Israel conflict.«We try to maintain our openness and our connectivity, and our business-friendly environment. It is a bit early to say what is going to happen, but we have to be more careful,» he added.On June 24, Thailand's Health Ministry issued an order which prohibited the sale of cannabis for recreational use, requiring a doctor's prescription for any retail purchase.

Eleven illegal massage establishments are being investigated after they were found operating under the guise of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) clinics, with one offering vice services.In a statement on Saturday (June 28), the police said they conducted enforcement operations on 181 TCM outlets between Feb 7 and April 14 following public feedback about unlicensed massage services and suspected vice activities.While most outlets checked were found to be in compliance with the law, 11 outlets were discovered to have non-certified TCM practitioners administering massages to customers.One clinic was also found to be offering vice services and a female employee was arrested for managing a place of assignation under the Women's Charter 1961.Investigations against the 11 non-compliant establishments are ongoing.Providing massage services without a valid licence carries severe penalties under Section 5(1) of the Massage Establishments Act 2017.If found guilty, offenders may be fined up to $10,000, jailed for up to two years, or both.Repeat offenders can be fined up to $20,000, imprisoned for up to five years, or both.

Phone calls soliciting donations and personal information for this year's National Day Parade (NDP) are scam calls, said the NDP 2025 executive committee (Exco) on on Saturday (June 28).In an advisory posted to their Facebook page, the NDP 2025 Exco said that it is aware of a recent scam where scam callers pretend to be NDP 2025 representatives and ask for cash sponsorships and personal information.«Do not disclose any personal, business, or sponsorship information if you are unsure of the caller's identity or credibility,» the post stated.[embed]https://www.facebook.com/NDPeeps/posts/pfbid02KPof7q4cW4i72sdaTaL8xfwBzr22sLoGgtoPehyBWRmNXh3bMz59AUz4kpSu9nhLl[/embed]A recording of a scam call was shared with The Straits Times, during which the scammer impersonated a NDP 2025 representative and asked for a «small sponsorship of between $300 to $500».The scammer said that the donation would be exempted from tax, and that it would be used to help the NDP 2025 and future editions run successfully.Members of the public can send an email to ndp@defence.gov.sg to verify any doubts regarding the identity or credibility of such callers.

SINGAPORE - A spike in cabin theft cases in Asia has been blamed on members of organised crime groups, who catch short-transit flights - including trips to Singapore - to steal small items from passengers.Hong Kong has been one of the worst hit, with 169 cases of in-flight theft involving HK$4.32 million (S$700,000) in valuables recorded in the first 10 months of 2024 - a 75 per cent increase from the same period the previous year.In an interview with The Straits Times, Assistant Commissioner M Malathi, who is commander of the Airport Police Division (APD), said that in-flight theft cases are difficult to detect and investigate.She said syndicate members, who work in pairs to steal from unsuspecting passengers, often catch a flight out of Singapore soon after landing at Changi Airport.«They will only take some cash and maybe one or two cards. They won't take your whole wallet, because if they do, it is easier to notice,» said AC Malathi, who added that the authorities have a short lead time before the suspects leave on an outbound flight.

A 56-year-old woman was found dead at the foot of an HDB block in Clementi on Friday (June 27).Photos of the scene on Xiaohongshu, also known as Rednote, showed that a portion of the walkway next to Block 441A had been cordoned off by the police. PHOTO: Xiaohongshu/Keshui Chong Ai Mo Ji In response to AsiaOne's queries, the police said they received a call for assistance at Block 441A Clementi Avenue 3 at 10.50am on June 27, where a woman was found lying motionless.She was pronounced dead at the scene by an SCDF paramedic.Based on preliminary investigations, the police do not suspect foul play, and investigations are ongoing.[[nid:719591]]syarifahsn@asiaone.com

Eye care-device giant Alcon officially opened its expanded state-of-the art manufacturing and logistics facility in Tuas Biomedical Park on Friday (June 27) morning. This brings Alcon's investments in Singapore to more than US$600 million (S$765 million) since it began operations in Singapore back in 2005.  The completed Tuas facility is one of the Swiss-American firm's largest high-tech manufacturing sites with Industry 4.0 capabilities, advanced automation and smart manufacturing systems to meet the increasing global demand for its contact lenses.  

Three men aged between 21 and 28 will be charged in court on Saturday (June 28) for their suspected involvement in money laundering and unauthorised access to computer material, in a case that involved the selling of Pokemon trading cards.In a press release on Saturday (June 28), the Singapore Police Force (SPF) said: «Between May and June 2025, the police received several reports from victims who were cheated by an online seller who was selling Pokemon trading cards on Carousell. After the victims made payment via bank transfers, they did not receive the said trading cards. »When questioned, the seller claimed he was in a business venture with another supplier who did not honour the transactions upon receiving payments."Officers from the Commercial Affairs Department conducted follow-up investigations and discovered the identities of the supplier and two accomplices, and arrested them on June 26 and 27, SPF said. The police believe the men have been involved in more than 50 similar scams, cheating victims out of at least $57,000.

Isabelle Lee had a childhood unlike most of her peers.The aspiring speech therapist grew up looking after her younger brother, Emmanuel, who has special needs, becoming the «quiet and dependable child» she believed her family needed at the time.Speaking to AsiaOne on Thursday (June 26), the 19-year-old described her childhood as «a blend of warmth and complexity».«I grew up in a very loving home, but I also felt that I had to grow up faster than most children my age,» she said.Isabelle explained that she felt she had to take on more responsibilities than her peers, such as making sure he completed his homework, ate and drank properly, played safely and felt accompanied.«I had to learn how to manage my own emotions at a young age, be helpful and be good,» said the teen.By harnessing her experience as a «glass child», a term which refers to siblings of children with special needs, Isabelle is determined to help others like Emmanuel and herself.She has enrolled for a four-year course in speech and language therapy at the Singapore Institute of Technology starting in September.

For Colonel Fairoz Bin Hassan, joining the Army was initially a practical decision — a means to fund his education, as his parents couldn't afford the costs.But what began as a necessity gradually transformed into a passion and, ultimately, a calling.Col Fairoz was among 1,282 Ministry of Defence and Singapore Armed Forces personnel promoted over the last two days, and is the second from the Malay community to be promoted to Brigadier General.The promotion will be effective July 1. Speaking to AsiaOne on Friday (June 27), the 46-year-old Chief Infantry Officer recounted a pivotal moment that reshaped his perspective — his deployment to Banda Aceh, Indonesia, in 2005, soon after the 2004 tsunami, in support of the Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. «My job was a UN liaison officer, and I was tasked with coordinating all the HADR relief efforts, linking up with what the public needed,» he said.

While Singapore may not be fighting a war now, that doesn't mean we should be complacent, Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing said in an interview with the media at the Ministry of Defence (Mindef) headquarters at Bukit Gombak on Wednesday (June 25).Chan, 55, highlighted some new developments in the global security order ahead of the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) Day on July 1, stating that there are more conflicts today — not just conventional, but also in cyberspace.«Today we are not at war, but neither are we at peace,» he said. «Today — and every day — the SAF is operating somewhere in-between.»On the cyberspace, the number of threat incidents that we have to deal with every day with other government agencies is not a small number.«Chan, previously Education Minister, was appointed Defence Minister following Prime Minister Lawrence Wong's cabinet reshuffle on May 21.The defence minister added that these »information operations" that are conducted on Singapore or when Singapore becomes a collateral are not something that Mindef will take lightly. 

Recently, there were two instances of concrete blocks falling from ceiling of HDB units.FM Love 972 radio DJ Ho Ai Ling narrowly avoided injury on June 22 when a chunk of concrete fell from the toilet ceiling in her flat at Block 81 Commonwealth Close in Queenstown. Ho moved into her 58-year-old flat 14 years ago.Earlier, an elderly man was struck by falling spalling concrete from the ceiling of his toilet in his Yishun HDB flat on the morning of June 19, sustaining injuries to both his leg and head, requiring more than 10 stitches. The flat was completed 41 years ago.While his family received assistance from Nee Soon GRC MP K Shanmugam with payment for repairs, where exactly does the buck stop when it comes to responsibility for spalling concrete in HDB homes?Is it the owner, HDB, or the town council?Owner's responsibility: HDBHDB has said that spalling concrete is a common issue for older buildings, exacerbated by damp conditions such as those in kitchens or toilets.

SINGAPORE - In a cohesive society, people understand the impact of their words and take responsibility for what they say publicly, including in online spaces, Edwin Tong said on June 26.«Sometimes, this will mean sacrificing our own desire to be able to say what we want about anything we want, wherever we want, in favour of being more caring about the impact they have on the person next to us,» he added.Tong, who is Law Minister, noted that people should be especially mindful about hateful speech, as conflict can be triggered by words.«If we are more mindful, we will have more open, honest, public discourse, based on facts and not hate and disinformation,» he said.He was speaking at the close of the three-day International Conference on Cohesive Societies held at Raffles City Convention Centre. It was organised by the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies and supported by the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, of which Tong was formerly minister.

A woman was recently accused of being «embarrassing» after she used her CDC vouchers to pay for a $100 meal during a date — prompting fresh debate over the intended use of the government-issued vouchers.In a now-viral TikTok post, the woman shared that she had offered to pay for dinner since she was the one who invited her date out. Upon realising the restaurant accepted CDC vouchers, she decided to use them.«Any normal person would be happy. I didn't even know restaurants can use CDC vouchers... so I used la.» PHOTO: Screengrab/TikTok/SG Confessions But the mood quickly soured. As she was leaving the car, her date remarked: «Why did you use CDC vouchers to pay? It's kinda embarrassing, eh.»The incident sparked a flurry of responses online, with many criticising the man's attitude.

At least $3 million has been lost to impersonation scams involving the WhatsApp screen-sharing function since June. In a statement released on Thursday (June 26), the police confirmed that at least 46 police reports have been lodged. According to the police, in this variant of the scam, victims receive unsolicited calls from local mobile numbers, allegedly from companies such as NTUC Income, NTUC Union, or UnionPay.Scammers would then claim that there were issues with insurance plans that the victims had supposedly purchased.When victims denied purchasing these policies, they would then be directed to a second scammer impersonating an officer from the Monetary Authority of Singapore. This second scammer would inform the victims that their bank accounts had been implicated in money-laundering activities and instruct them to transfer their money to a «safety account» for safekeeping.Victims were then guided through internet banking transfers via WhatsApp's screen-sharing function, inadvertently exposing their bank account and internet banking details. 

SINGAPORE - A panel with artificial intelligence experts convened by the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) will assess the appeal of one of the three university students who were penalised for AI usage in their submitted work.All three of them were given zero marks for an essay as part of a module on health, disease outbreaks and politics at the School of Social Sciences.In response to queries, NTU said on June 26 that it had met two of the students in separate face-to-face consultations this week to discuss their cases.The objective of the consultation for the first student was to assess the grounds for appeal and not to make any conclusions about the specifics of her case, said a spokeswoman.For the second student, her request for an appeal was rejected, as “the student had admitted to using Gen AI for the essay and had shared how it was used prior to the preliminary inquiry in April”, she added.The third student told The Straits Times that he did not submit an appeal.NTU said the first student has formally submitted her appeal to the university, adding that details cannot be provided while this process is ongoing.

Private organisations in Singapore should stop using National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) numbers to prove a person's identity as soon as possible, the Ministry of Digital Development and Information (MDDI) has said.In a media release on Thursday (June 26), MDDI said that while NRIC numbers may be used to identify a person over the phone or when using digital services, it should not be used for authenticating access to private services or information meant only for that person.In a joint advisory issued the same day, the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) and Cyber Security Agency (CSA) said NRIC numbers are issued to uniquely identify a person and must be assumed to have been disclosed to at least a few other persons.Noting that organisations are responsible for deciding whether and how to authenticate their users, CSA said passwords are one such method of authenticating a person.Passwords that cannot be easily guessed should hence be used, it said, noting that passwords containing easily obtained information including names, NRIC numbers or birthdates do not make strong passwords.

Several teenagers were spotted behaving erratically after allegedly using drug-laced 'Kpods' vaporisers outside a mall in Punggol. According to Shin Min Daily News, the incident reportedly occurred on Tuesday (June 24) at around 1am. In a video uploaded to Sgfollowsall Instagram on June 24, youths could be seen stumbling unsteadily, walking in a zombie-like manner, with one collapsing and another struggling to walk straight after allegedly using the drug-laced vapes.Unlike regular vape liquids, the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) has warned that 'Kpods' contain etomidate — an anaesthetic agent classified as a poison under the Poisons Act.According to the person who recorded the video, the incident took place at Punggol Waterway. The person also reportedly called the police after leaving the scene. 

Four men, aged 16 to 23, were charged last Saturday (June 21) for using Sheng Siong teller machines to allegedly launder money.Of the four, three were charged under Section 411 of the Penal Code, while one was charged with an offence under the Corruption, Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes Act.The scheme came to light when Sheng Siong customer and operations director Lin Zikai noticed multiple suspicious transactions made at the same time by the same account at different $TMs across Singapore on June 18.The service was suspended the next day and restored on June 23.Known as simple teller machines ($TM), the ones at Sheng Siong differ from other ATMs as they generate a PayNow QR code which can be scanned to authorise dispensing of cash.A maximum of $1,000 can be withdrawn in one transaction, with the number of transactions tied to the PayNow daily limit.While the default withdrawal limit for PayNow is $1,000, users can change it up to $200,000.

SINGAPORE — The Workers' Party wants to get to a position where it is ready to step in and govern, should the ruling PAP suffer a «major malfunction», said Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh.«You want to be in a position where you can say: 'Look, we're ready because we've got these years of experience under our belt,'» he added.This would be a «great insurance for Singapore», said Singh, who has been party chief since 2018.«I'm not saying me and my colleagues today will be in that position, but we certainly want to put the party in that position,» he added.Singh, who was making his first podcast appearance, was responding to a question by former Malaysian health minister Khairy Jamaluddin on whether he could see a Singapore without the PAP at the helm. Khairy and former Umno information chief Shahril Hamdan are hosts of popular Malaysian political podcast Keluar Sekejap, which translates to «out for a moment».[embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/DLOhezFy-Dr/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=YzRzd3VnODdtMGty[/embed]

Several residents at Choa Chu Kang are at their wits' end over a neighbour who repeatedly feeds birds on the HDB corridor railings.This is despite multiple reminders by these residents not to do so. According to the residents, the woman's act has resulted in a dirty and foul-smelling common corridor, with leftover food and bird droppings accumulating in the area.Speaking to AsiaOne, one resident, Alan Khoo, said the constant bird feeding has turned the shared area into a mess. «I have to pass by that corridor to get to my unit, and honestly it is so smelly and dirty. At times, it is unbearable,» said the 58-year-old IT manager. Despite efforts by the neighbours to get the lady to stop feeding the birds, she has remained uncooperative, continuing to feed them daily and even placing more plants along the main corridor.«This neighbour usually wakes up very early to feed the birds, thinking she won't be caught, but we know it's her,» said Khoo. «We've tried numerous times to persuade her to stop, but she gets very angry and ends up adding more plants, further cluttering the common area.» 

A woman narrowly avoided injury last Sunday when a chunk of concrete fell from the toilet ceiling in her flat at Block 81 Commonwealth Close in Queenstown.After reading a report about spalling concrete last week, Ho Ai Ling, 52, began keeping a close watch on a crack in her toilet ceiling and avoided standing directly beneath while showering.She told Lianhe Zaobao that she escaped injury as she was standing close to the wall when the concrete collapsed.«I read a report on Saturday about a home in Yishun where the ceiling collapsed and the man had to get more than 10 stitches on his head. I reminded myself and my roommates to be careful, and it saved my life the next day.»The livestreamer and actress added that she was fortunate the ceiling fan was off, as falling debris could have struck the blades and caused a more serious incident.The flat was built in 1967 and is 58 years old.Since moving in 14 years ago, she has repeatedly dealt with cracks and peeling paint on the toilet ceiling, she said.On June 18, she called the Housing Development Board (HDB) after discovering that the toilet ceiling had bulged again.