An 18-year-old French teenager, who was seen on video licking a straw from an iJooz machine at Goldhill Centre, was charged in court on Friday (April 24).Didier Gaspard Owen Maximilien, a student at Essec Business School, was charged with one count each of committing mischief and public nuisance. According to charge sheets seen by AsiaOne, the alleged act of mischief took place at about 2pm on March 12, at Goldhill Centre along Thomson Road.iJooz, which has about 1,500 machines islandwide as of January 2025, had to replace all 500 straws in the affected machine, at a total valued cost of $5.It also implemented additional internal checks, inspections, straw replacements, and machine sanitation protocols in the wake of the incident.For filming himself committing the mischief, editing it on Snapchat and posting the edited video onto his Instagram story, Maximilien was charged with public nuisance.The 18-year-old, who was represented by lawyers Kalidass Murugaiyan and Kanthan Raghavendra, did not indicate how he would plead.

A Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) ambulance was involved in a road accident with a taxi on Thursday (April 23) morning.Responding to queries from AsiaOne, SCDF said the accident occurred along the slip road from Buangkok East Drive towards the Kallang–Paya Lebar Expressway at about 7.30am, and involved a minor collision with a car.SCDF said the ambulance was responding to a medical incident at the time, with its siren and emergency lights activated. There was no patient on board.SCDF added that another ambulance was dispatched to attend to the medical incident. No injuries were reported in the accident involving the ambulance.

Ten people have been apparently attacked by crows in Chinatown over the past week, with the majority of the victims reportedly being bald or balding men.According to a tip-off sent to Shin Min Daily News, three crows are behind the recent attacks in the vicinity of Chinatown Complex.One video shared with the Chinese evening paper shows two crows swooping down on an elderly man walking along Smith Street, who then looks up in shock and touches the back of his head.Another clip shows a crow flying towards another elderly man walking past the spiral car park, though the bird U-turns before making contact with the pedestrian.Shop owners told Shin Min on Wednesday (April 22) that the crows appeared in the past week and are likely roosting in a nearby tree.They had also never seen crow attacks occur in the area before the recent spate of incidents.«Recently, it happens nearly every day, typically at about 10am and 5pm. About two or three crows would circle around the area,» a shop owner said, suggesting that they might be protecting their young.

The Singapore Government has pledged US$100,000 (S$128,000) towards Jordan's Humanitarian Assistance Initiative for Lebanon as part of international efforts to address the situation there.The contribution will go towards the provision of medical supplies, food assistance, shelter and the hygiene needs of civilians in Lebanon, said Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) in a statement on Thursday (April 23).It also urged the involved parties to adhere to the existing ceasefire and engage in negotiations for lasting resolution in the conflict, calling for the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure. Since the war began, more than one million people have been displaced, with at least 2,300 people killed in Israeli strikes, according to an update by Lebanon's Health Ministry on April 14.

An American with a deep appreciation for Singapore's food scene has turned his admiration into miniature art — recreating iconic hawker stalls using custom lego builds. Images of his creations, shared on Reddit on Monday (April 21), showcase detailed miniature versions of well-known local food stalls, drawing praise from netizens for their craftsmanship and nostalgic appeal.The creator, who goes by the name Matthew Hine on Instagram, said he took care to ensure the builds were as accurate as possible, working from a combination of photos sourced online as well as pictures he took during his visits to Singapore.Having visited the Republic multiple times over the last 25 years, Hine, 48, said in his Reddit post that one of his favourite aspects of the country is its vibrant hawker culture. «I decided I wanted to try to capture a bit of the magic in a couple of custom lego designs to put on my shelf at home, so I picked a couple of my personal favourite places—Toast Hut for kopi and kaya toast, and Rahmath Cheese Prata for roti prata,» he wrote.

A peregrine falcon chick — which took its first fight out of a recess in OCBC Centre earlier in April — was found dead on April 16.It is also the second of a full clutch of four which hatched on Feb 20 and 22 to have died this month, following the death of another chick on April 4.Dr Malcom Soh, principal researcher at the National Parks Board's wildlife management research branch, said the chick was found dead on the ground in the Central Business District (CBD).The cause of death in both instances has not been established. Checks on Facebook group Singapore Wildlife Sightings, where the peregrine chicks' movements have been regularly documented by observers, indicate that comments on the chick's death first surfaced last week.On Wednesday (April 22), Teo, an observer who has been documenting the chicks' growth, wrote that he has tried to confirm the claim by going to the CBD area to conduct observations.

A 23-year-old Malaysian man was arrested on April 14 for attempting to smuggle drugs into Singapore via Woodlands Checkpoint in the boot of his car.In a joint statement on Thursday (April 23), the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) and the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) said the drugs seized — 5,127g of cannabis and 2,072g of methamphetamine, also known as Ice — have an estimated value of $547,000.ICA officers had directed the car for enhanced checks and found two plastic bags believed to contain controlled drugs in the boot.CNB officers were immediately alerted and conducted further checks.Through follow-up investigations, CNB officers launched an operation in the vicinity of Woodlands Industrial Park on the same day.Two Bangladeshi men, aged 42 and 36, were arrested for suspected drug offences.«The drugs seized have an estimated worth of more than $547,000 and could potentially feed the addiction of about 1,900 abusers for a week,» said ICA and CNB.Investigations are ongoing.

Singapore has blocked six websites masquerading as local mainstream news sources, but which are actually operated by foreign actors.The inauthentic sites were identified by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), which assessed that they could be used to launch hostile information campaigns.In such campaigns, foreign attackers use sophisticated online tools and tactics in a coordinated manner to advance a country's interests, such as by influencing domestic political discourse.In a joint statement on Thursday (April 23), MHA and the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) said the websites use spoofing or Singapore-associated terms in their domain name, and carry local news.«They are associated with other websites and networks which had previously been flagged by various international analysts as being inauthentic and carrying out mis- and dis-information activities,» the authorities added.Directions to Internet Access Service Providers (IASPs) to disable access to the six sites for Singapore users were issued by IMDA after it assessed MHA's findings.The blocked sites are:

A secondary school student seen bowing to motorists at a zebra crossing in a viral interaction simply wants to show her thanks, she told Lianhe Zaobao.Earlier in April, a Reddit user shared dashcam footage of a Bartley Secondary School student performing a deep bow as she crossed the road and waving at the car with a wide smile.The act of stopping and bow in front of cars at crossings — inspired from a Japanese greeting rooted in respect — had become an internet trend.Many netizens welcomed the culture and praised the schoolgirl for her courtesy and good manners.@asiaoneOthers wondered if she was doing the «bringing Japanese culture to Singapore» trend from TikTok. #sgnews #singapore #zebracrossing #pedestrians #car

A 15-year-old is among 239 persons being investigated by the police for their alleged involvement in scams following an islandwide operation between April 9 and 22.In a statement on Thursday (April 23), police said the operation, involving officers from their Commercial Affairs Department and the seven Police Land Divisions, resulted in the arrest of 162 men and 77 women, aged between 15 and 85.They are believed to be involved in more than 676 cases of scams, including e-commerce, friend impersonation, job, government official impersonation, investment and rental. Victims reportedly lost over $8.9 million.The alleged offenders are being investigated for cheating, money laundering, and providing payment services without a licence.The offence of cheating carries up to 10 years' imprisonment and a fine, while money laundering carries up to 10 years' imprisonment, a fine of up to $500,000, or both.Since Dec 30 last year, scammers and members or recruiters of scam syndicates face mandatory caning of at least six strokes, up to 24 strokes. 

Supermarket chain FairPrice will expand its price freeze initiative to include more than 300 staples, up from 100, in a move aimed at easing the financial burden on Singaporeans amid supply chain disruptions due to the war in the Middle East.In a statement on Thursday (April 23), FairPrice Group (FPG) said the price freeze will take effect from April 23 to May 31.The original list of 100 daily essentials was first announced on April 8.The expansion comes as more than 30 suppliers have joined FPG in this initiative to help stabilise costs.The expanded list includes items such as Nestlé cereals and coffee mixes, Kang Kang packaged noodles by TSK Foods, Lee Kum Kee sauces and condiments, Colgate toothpaste, Head & Shoulders shampoo, among others.

SINGAPORE — Supermarket and minimart chain Hao Mart has shrunk its network of outlets as it sinks further into the red, according to checks by The Straits Times.Hao Mart’s website on April 22 lists 20 outlets in Singapore, but only seven were operating when ST visited all the listed locations over a two-week period in the second half of March.The latest records filed with the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA) obtained by ST also show the company’s losses have worsened for three consecutive years.The home-grown chain reported a $49.6 million loss for the financial year ending March 31, 2025 — the latest available figure belatedly provided to ACRA in January. This amount is up from $32.8 million in the preceding year and $23.2 million in the year before.ACRA said in response to ST queries in March that it has taken enforcement action against Hao Mart for failing to submit its annual returns within six months of the end of its financial year.While the regulator did not specify the penalty, its website states that late submissions could incur fines of $300 or $600, depending on the length of delay.

A cat lover has lamented about the lack of compassion towards a beloved feline in Tampines after nasi lemak and sambal were placed on its feeding tray.In a post on the Facebook page Support Tampines Cat Caregivers on Monday (April 20), a user who identified as Madeline Goh said: «Come on human, I believe we can do better than this.»An accompanying photo showed a feeding bowl filled with rice, a packet of sambal and a slice of cucumber. Another feeding bowl on the same tray was filled with kibble. «By feeding the community cat nasi lemak and sambal, this is causing more harm to the cat than helping,» wrote Goh.«Don't let me run into you doing that!»The post has since garnered over 300 reactions and more than 90 comments, with most netizens outraged at the culprit's action. «I don’t think he's feeding. More like want to create a mess for feeders to clean.. like purposely!» wrote one user.«I would rather they don't feed than giving them this human food that will make them sick,» said another.«Cats won't eat that and it is potentially toxic to cats to eat such things,» added a commenter. 

Singapore Customs is investigating a parcel containing contraband cigarettes that were flown into Singapore through airmail. In a Facebook reel shared on Thursday (April 23), the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said that its officers detected anomalies in a scanned image of a postal article at Airmail Transit Centre in the Changi Airfreight Centre.After physically examining the parcel, they discovered more than 30 cartons and over 300 packets of duly-unpaid cigarettes concealed within metal frames and plywood.«The exhibits were handed over to Singapore Customs for further investigation,» said ICA. Under the Customs Act and the GST Act, buying, selling, conveying, delivering, storing, possessing and dealing in duty-unpaid goods are serious offences.