A 63-year-old Australian will be charged in court on Thursday (April 2) for his alleged involvement in a case of disorderly conduct on board a plane, causing the aircraft to return to Changi Airport.Police said in a statement on Wednesday evening that the alleged incident took place at about 6.40pm on March 19.The man, who was believed to be drunk, was behaving unruly on board a flight. He is said to have shouted profanities and thrown his shoes about 20 minutes after the aircraft departed.Attempts by the cabin crew to calm him down were futile as he purportedly continued to behave in a disorderly manner towards a crew member and had to be placed under restraint.This led to the pilot deciding to return to the airport for the man to be offloaded.He was arrested by officers from the Airport Police Division upon arrival.If found guilty of behaving in a disorderly manner towards a crew member or aircraft, he may be jailed for up to five years, fined up to $100,000, or both.Police reminded all passengers that they treat all acts of violence, threats and disruptive behaviour onboard aircraft seriously.

Ten people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in fraudulent work pass applications, the Ministry of Manpower said on Wednesday (April 1).Among those who nabbed in an island-wide enforcement operation on Tuesday were directors and employees from five construction companies.Another 41 people are assisting in investigations for their involvement in such illegal arrangements.The ministry is also probing into the Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions of more than 40 people in relation to the five companies.The firms had allegedly made CPF contributions to Singaporeans and permanent residents to “phantom workers” — or those not under their employment — to inflate their quota to hire foreigners.«These companies then used the inflated quota to make work pass applications to hire more foreigners,» MOM said.Under the ministry guidelines, the quota, also known as dependency ratio ceiling (DRC), is the maximum ratio of foreign workers to the total workforce that a company can employ.Depending on the sector like construction or services, the DRC ranges between 35 per cent and 83.3 per cent.

Following a coroner's inquiry into the death of Indian singer Zubeen Garg, whose death was ruled an accidental drowning, the police said on Wednesday (April 1) that their investigations into the death have also concluded.«There is no evidence of foul play,» they said.They added that investigations were conducted in accordance with the Singapore Coroners Act, with investigators examining all available evidence and recording statements from all witnesses deemed to be relevant to the case.Investigations established that Garg was on a yacht trip in the waters off Lazarus Island.The 52-year-old was found to be initially wearing a life jacket while swimming, but later removed it and returned to the yacht without the life jacket on him.

Singaporeans can expect wetter weather during the first two weeks of April, according to the Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) on Wednesday (April 1) .Thundery showers have been forecast over parts of Singapore in the afternoon on most days, and they may extend into the afternoon on most days.The total rainfall for the first fortnight is forecast to be near average of 164.3mm over most parts of the island.Daily maximum temperatures may still range between 33 deg C and 35 deg C most days while it might exceed 35 deg C on days when there is less cloud.There were several fair days in the last two weeks of March with short-duration thundery showers over parts of the island in the afternoon on a few days.The daily total rainfall of 58.4mm recorded at Tuas South on March 17 and at Lim Chu Kang on March 18 was the highest recorded for the second fortnight.The northeast monsoon conditions prevailing over the region are forecast to gradually weaken and end, with inter-monsoon conditions setting in during the first week of April.

Punggol is keeping up the heat on active mobility offences to keep its young population safe.In a Facebook post on Monday (March 30), Punggol Neighbourhood Police Centre said it conducted a joint enforcement operation against active mobility offences with the Land Transport Authority.A total of 11 offences under the Active Mobility Act were detected during the four-day operation, including riding non-compliant personal mobility devices and power-assisted bicycles, riding bicycles without mandatory handbrake and registration-related violations.Five non-compliant active mobility devices were also impounded during the operation.The «targeted operation» across Punggol, conducted between March 16 and 19, included hotspots such as Punggol Town Square and Lor Halus Red Bridge.«You have been warned previously and we are serious about keeping our streets safe!» the police said in the post.

Punggol's first self-driving shuttles made their public debut on Wednesday (April 1), said service operator Grab.The shuttles — called Autonomously Intelligent Ride (Ai.R) — ply two of three planned routes around the neighbourhood: Route 1 connects Punggol West and East, while route 3 links Punggol West and North.Online reservations for both shuttle routes opened on March 25, and the rides are free of charge until Grab begins commercial service in the middle of 2026.«Grab is delighted to be bringing the first autonomous vehicle service in a residential area in Singapore to the public,» the super app said on Wednesday.«This service...is about building a future where technology and the community move forward together.»The fleet of 11 autonomous shuttles operated by Grab are developed by Chinese autonomous vehicle company WeRide. 10 of the vehicles are five-seaters, while one can accommodate up to eight passengers.The shuttles underwent months of testing and collectively travelled more than 30,000km without incident before service officially opened to the public, Grab added.

A 61-year-old woman was found dead at the foot of an HDB block in Yishun on Tuesday (March 31) morning.The incident happened at about 9.05am at Block 136 Yishun Ring Road.When AsiaOne reached the scene at about 12pm, there were at least three police fast response cars present. A police cordon was set up at the ground floor next to a lift lobby built during the block's Lift Upgrading Programme.The body was already removed by then, but a police investigation officer was still conducting checks at the scene.Responding to media queries, the police and Singapore Civil Defence Force said the woman was found lying motionless at the foot of the block and was pronounced dead at the scene by a paramedic.The police confirmed that the woman had fallen from height, adding that preliminary investigations do not suggest foul play and that investigations are ongoing.

SINGAPORE — A former pre-school principal, who agreed to reformat a CCTV system after a cook was caught on video molesting a two-year-old girl, was sentenced to 10 days' jail on April 1.The 62-year-old woman had pleaded guilty to one count of intentionally omitting information on sexual assault committed by Teo Guan Huat.Before handing down the sentence, District Judge Sharmila Sripathy-Shanaz said that the former principal was in a position of trust, but failed to honour that trust.In November 2025, Teo, then 61, was sentenced to nine years, four months and seven weeks in jail.The prosecution said it was one of the most horrendous acts of sexual abuse committed in a pre-school.Teo pleaded guilty to three molestation charges in October 2025. The Malaysian had molested three girls, aged one to two, while the victims were in a nap room at the facility.In December 2025, the former principal was one of three women convicted in offences linked to the reformatted CCTV footage.One of them was the vice-principal, then 49, who was sentenced to three months and two weeks' jail in January. 

There may not be quite as many bins in other countries compared to Singapore - but that doesn't mean littering is allowed.A Singapore resident has been sentenced to RM1,000 (S$322) and four hours of community service in Johor Bahru's Magistrates' Court on Wednesday (April 1) after he was caught for littering.He was among the four in court on Wednesday facing charges relating to littering. Sinha Vaibhav, 40, pleaded guilty but asked for a reduction in community service due to a knee injury, providing the judge with a doctor's memo.He will serve his four hours of community service over the course of six months, spending an hour each day he conducts his service.'I shouldn't have done that'Speaking with AsiaOne, Vaibhav shared that he threw a can of coke into a pile of trash outside a KKMart in front of KSL City Mall while waiting for his car to finish servicing on Jan 14 this year.The Singapore resident - who is here on an employment pass - told AsiaOne that he was unable to find a bin nearby, and believed it was okay to toss his trash there because someone else had already done the same.

Denise Wong has been appointed commissioner of the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC), the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) announced on Wednesday (April 1).Wong, who is presently assistant chief executive (ACE) at IMDA's innovation and protection group, and concurrently PDPC's deputy commissioner, will continue to serve as ACE — where she oversees Singapore's data and artificial intelligence governance policies and ecosystem development.In a joint media release by the authority and the commission, they said that Wong will lead the development and execution of PDPC's strategic direction in her new role.The agencies added that apart from regulatory and enforcement decisions, she will also advise the Government on data protection matters and lead the commission to represent the Government internationally on matters relating to data protection."(In her previous role as deputy commissioner) she was instrumental in the formulation and implementation of policies that advance the responsible use of data. 

A 53-year-old woman was allegedly locked inside a private hire vehicle over a payment dispute with the driver.The woman, who wished to be known only as Wang, told Shin Min Daily News that the incident occurred on Saturday (March 28), when she booked a ride via the ride-hailing platform Ryde from Fajar Shopping Centre in Bukit Panjang to her workplace in Chinatown.«The journey, which usually takes about 30 minutes, took an hour to get to my destination,» she said, adding that the driver, whom she believed to be in his sixties, was also seen driving with one hand throughout the ride.Upon arrival, Wang said the driver stopped at Amoy Street instead of her stated destination at Club Street and informed her that they had reached.As she was in a hurry, Wang told Shin Min that she had asked the driver to let her alight and intended to pay the fare — about $24 — via PayNow.

Singapore will build its first new Hindu temple in 20 years in Yishun, the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY) said on Wednesday (April 1).The ministry said in a statement that construction for the Sree Guruvayoorappan Ayyappan Temple in Yishun Avenue 3 is expected to begin by September and will take up to three years.The last Hindu temple to be built was the Arulmigu Velmurugan Gnanamuneeswarar Temple in Sengkang in 2006.MCCY said that the Sree Guruvayoorappan Ayyappan Temple will also feature an adjacent annex building with a multi-purpose hall and event spaces to host cultural, educational and social outreach programmes.The facilities will support community-building initiatives such as inter-faith collaboration and food distribution, the ministry added.  Former MP R. Ravindran will lead the temple’s board of trustees to oversee the construction of the temple.

A 29-year-old Malaysian man and a 19-year-old Singaporean man were arrested on Monday (March 30) for their alleged involvement in a case of government official impersonation scam.The 29-year-old is also the tenth Malaysian to be arrested for similar cases in March this year.In a statement on Wednesday night, the police said they received a report from an 86-year-old male victim who got a call from an unknown person claiming to be from telco Simba. The unknown person claimed the victim's identity was used to purchase equipment. He was then contacted by another person shortly, who claimed to be an officer from the Ministry of Law.The «officer» directed the victim to transfer close to $13,000 to a specified bank account to prove that he did not purchase the equipment. The male victim complied and transferred the requested amount accordingly. He only realised that he has been scammed after he told his family about the matter. 

Former police commissioner Hoong Wee Teck will take over as chairman of the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) from Wednesday (April 1), the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) announced in a press release on the same day.Hoong, who is presently deputy chairman of GRA, served in the Singapore Police Force for 38 years and led it for 11 years as its commissioner.He handed over command to new top cop How Kwang Hwee earlier in January.The ministry paid tribute to outgoing chairman Tan Tee How, who served in the role for about eight years.«His leadership has helped GRA to effectively fulfil its responsibilities of keeping gambling in Singapore free from criminal influence, and minimising its harms to Singapore society,» MHA said.The former Casino Regulatory Authority was reconstituted as GRA in 2022, following the enactment of the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Singapore Act and the Gambling Control Act.