As motorists ring in the weekend, Shell afforded some relief, dropping its petrol prices by two cents on Friday (March 27). This is the third consecutive day that fuel companies in Singapore have dropped petrol prices, starting with Shell on Wednesday. In addition, the posted price for 95-octane petrol at Shell and SPC have now fallen back below the previous high of $3.42 per litre set in June 2022. According to records on the Consumer Association of Singapore's (Case) Price Kaki fuel prices tracker, Caltex's posted price of $3.45 for its 95-octane petrol on March 13 surpassed that record. At the peak of petrol prices on Tuesday, the posted price of 95-octane petrol ranged from $3.46 at SPC to $3.47 at Caltex, Esso, Shell and Sinopec. 

A man has been reported missing after a collision between a pleasure craft and a supply vessel off the Southern Islands on Friday (March 27).In a statement on Friday, the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said search-and-rescue operations are ongoing for the missing person, who was on board the pleasure craft when it collided with the supply vessel at around 4.15 am.MPA added that two other people on board the pleasure craft have been rescued and are safe.«All persons on board the supply vessel are accounted for, and no injuries have been reported,» said the authority.Patrol craft have also been deployed, along with assets from the Police Coast Guard and the SCDF Marine Division.The authority added that it is in contact with the next-of-kin of the missing person and is providing the necessary support.Navigational broadcasts have also been issued for vessels in the vicinity to keep a lookout.[[nid:727470]]xingying.koh@asiaone.com

A pregnant customer unexpectedly went into labour at a Chinatown beauty salon and gave birth there with the help of a staff member.In a TikTok video which has since gone viral, the mother is seen being brought out of the salon, named Smart Cat Head Spa, on a stretcher.A man follows behind, cradling a swaddled newborn in his arms.«My store witnessed the birth of a life,» wrote TikTok user jasonsg520.Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, a salon staff member, surnamed Zhang, said the woman had visited the shop at noon on Wednesday (March 25) for an eyelash appointment.She was feeling slightly unwell then, and told the 38-year-old beauty technician she had just seen a doctor who said all was fine.Just as Zhang finished the service, the woman's condition suddenly changed, reported the Chinese publication.«She said that she didn't feel well and she looked pale. I was also panicking and didn't know what to do,» Zhang said.The technician quickly laid out a blanket on the floor for the customer, who notified her husband about the situation. She also asked another customer to help call for an ambulance.

The parents of a 10-month-old baby born with a rare genetic disease were overwhelmed with emotion on Friday (March 27), having secured the $2.4million needed for a one-time gene therapy which is not covered by insurance or government subsidies. Speaking to AsiaOne, the boy's mother Norhaziqah Rosli, 35, said, «Reaching the target felt surreal for our family. »There were so many moments along the way where we didn’t know if we would make it, so when we finally did, it was overwhelming in the most emotional way. «We felt a deep sense of relief, gratitude, and hope.»Norhaziqah and her husband Rahman Rahim, 37, started their crowdfunding campaign on Ray of Hope with the help of a volunteer on Jan 5 for their fourth child Faziq, who was born with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) which causes muscles to weaken over time.[[nid:732120]]

The police are appealing for information on the whereabouts of a 15-year-old girl, Putri Aleeya Natasya Binte Mohamed Fadli.In a news release on Friday (March 27) afternoon, the police said she was last seen in the vicinity of Block 492A Tampines Street 45 at about 5.40pm on Thursday.She was last seen wearing an orange short sleeved shirt and black pants.Those with information are urged to contact the police hotline at 999 or submit information online at www.police.gov.sg/i-witness.All information will be kept strictly confidential, the police said.[[nid:731460]]editor@asiaone.com

Three people were charged on Thursday (March 26) with harbouring immigration offenders, said the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA). In the first case, Singaporeans Phang Kang Rui, 26, and Chia Kai Hui, 32, are accused of allowing a 33-year-old Malaysian man, Ho Aik Chuan, to stay with them despite his visit pass having expired on Nov 22, 2015. Investigations by ICA found that Phang and Chia allegedly harboured Ho at their unit in Bukit Batok West Avenue 8 from Oct 1, 2024 until his arrest on June 10, 2025, said ICA in a statement. Ho has been deported and barred from re-entering Singapore, having served his sentence of six months' jail along with three strokes of the cane. Meanwhile, 40-year-old Chinese work permit holder Xie Shenghua is accused of allowing a 42-year-old Chinese man, Zhang Xiaoling, to stay at a unit in Prinsep Link from mid-March 2025 until Jan 14, 2026. Xie allegedly harboured Zhang with reckless disregard as to whether his stay in Singapore was valid, said ICA. His special pass had expired on Sept 12, 2024. 

A total of 142 men and 66 women, including a 15-year-old teenager, are under investigation following a two-week long operation between March 12 and 25, the police said in a statement on Thursday (March 26). The operation involved officers from the Commercial Affairs Department and the seven police land divisions, and resulted in investigations into the 208 people aged between 15 and 77 for their suspected roles in scams as scammers or money mules. The suspects are allegedly involved in over 720 cases of scams where victims reportedly lost more than $6.12 million. These cases comprise mostly e-commerce scams, friend impersonations scams, job scams, government official impersonation scams, investment scams and rental scams. The 208 alleged scammers and money mules are being investigated for the offences of cheating, money laundering, or providing payment services without a licence. If found guilty of cheating, an offender faces a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine, while those convicted of money laundering may be jailed for up to 10 years and/or fined up to $500,000. 

Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Thursday (March 26) met China's top legislator Zhao Leji after speaking at the annual Boao Forum for Asia held in Hainan, China.Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said in a statement on the same evening that the two leaders reaffirmed the strength and depth of Singapore-China relations and commended the progress made to further deepen bilateral ties under the All-Round High-Quality Future-Oriented Partnership.They also exchanged views on cross-straits developments, where PM Wong reiterated Singapore's consistent and longstanding «One China» policy.«Prime Minister Wong reaffirmed Singapore and China's shared commitment to upholding rules-based multilateralism and free trade, including through platforms such as Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec), which China is chairing this year,» MFA added.

A property agent helped her client lease out his flat to three tenants, but was shocked to find seven more walking out of a room. In a TikTok video shared on Tuesday (March 24), Glynis Tan, who runs the account Property Science SG, said that at least 15 people were living at the flat in Little India. Owners of four-room or larger flats are allowed to house up to eight tenants, or unrelated people who are not from the same family unit. Up to four people are allowed to live in one and two-room flats, while the limit for three-room flats is six. The video shows four luggage stacked on top of one another in the kitchen and mattresses in every room. Tan said the police were first called after there were complaints of overcrowding in the flat. After discovering the illegal occupants, she demanded them to leave «on the spot». «We gave them 30 minutes to move out all their belongings. The locksmith proceeded to change all the locks and keys,» added Tan. 

SINGAPORE — A school teacher entered into a romantic and subsequently sexual relationship with one of her former students after he graduated from primary school.On March 26, the 35-year-old woman was handed a year and 10 months’ jail after she pleaded guilty to two charges — sexual penetration of a minor and committing an indecent act with a child. Two similar charges were taken into consideration during her sentencing.She cannot be named as there is a gag order to protect the victim’s identity.After the ex-student broke up with her, she stalked him.She called him on the phone 25 times and sent him at least 17 emails, in which she claimed he had ruined her emotionally and mentally.She also said she was unhappy about his new romantic relationship, his photograph was still the wallpaper on her phone and she wanted to get back together with him.He finally made a police report in March 2024 against the woman, around four years after they started their romantic relationship when the boy was 13.The court heard that the woman was the boy’s primary school mathematics teacher in 2016 and 2017.

Regular train services on the Circle Line will resume on April 10, nine days earlier than planned, as reinforcement works on a stretch of twin tunnels can be completed ahead of schedule.A massive, round-the-clock project to install steel plates along a segment of tunnels between Paya Lebar and Stadium MRT stations has been ongoing since Jan 17.«As the teams involved gained familiarity with the complex work processes, they achieved some time savings, especially during the latter phases of works,» said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and train operator SMRT on Thursday (March 26).With the help of robotics, workers have finished installing all the steel plates needed to strengthen the stretch of tunnels that are most affected by an issue called tunnel squatting.This refers to when underground tunnels built in soft soil, such as marine clay, become deformed when the soil above compresses.

If you are a frequent user of the Upper Serangoon Road exit on Central Expressway (CTE), note that it will be temporarily closed on seven days in April and May.In order to facilitate ongoing bridge launching works for the new pedestrian-cum-cycling link across the Pan Island Expressway (PIE), Exit 8B will be temporarily closed to traffic from 12am to 2am on the following dates:April 3, 15, 17, 19 and 29May 1 and 6Similar to the closures on March 18 and 20, the upcoming closure will not affect the same exit to PIE (Changi-bound).In a news release on Thursday (March 26), the Urban Redevelopment Authority advised motorists to use the alternative route via Exit 10 to Braddell Road to continue their journey to Upper Serangoon Road. 

The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) will gradually begin using facial images to clear motorcyclists at its land checkpoints from March 31 (Tuesday).Starting at the Woodlands Checkpoint, facial recognition will serve as the primary biometric identifier replacing fingerprint scanning at 18 automated motorcycle lanes at the arrival zone.This initiative will be progressively extended to all 70 automated arrival and departure motorcycle lanes at the checkpoint, before being rolled out to Tuas Checkpoint in the third quarter of 2026.ICA began trialling the use of facial recognition at selected motorcycle lanes in January, involving more than 150,000 motorcyclists.The facial recognition system is available to Singapore residents, long-term pass holders, and foreign visitors who have previously entered Singapore.As part of the immigration clearance process, motorcyclists and pillion riders will first present the QR code generated via the MyICA mobile application, or passport, before proceeding to biometrics verification.