A Singaporean has died on Sep. 17 while climbing Mount Manaslu in Nepal.

Lau Wee Seng, 50, died at around 6,000m while descending from Camp II during an acclimatisation rotation, The Himalayan Times reported.

He reportedly felt uncomfortable while descending and passed away while resting.

Lau's family has been informed, with a helicopter mobilised to bring his body to Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal.

Lau was apparently travelling with 8K Expeditions.

The cause of death has not been confirmed, though it was reported that initial assessment indicates he may have suffered a heart attack.

Meanwhile, an avalanche had disrupted rope-fixing work above Camp III on the morning of Sep. 16, The Himalayan Times reported.

A man died on board a Malaysia Airlines flight bound for Sydney on Sep. 16 2026.

The Daily Mail Australia reported that the man was on flight MH141, which departed from Kuala Lumpur in the morning and landed in Sydney at 7:40 Australia time, flying for a total of eight hours.

The Daily Mail said it understood the man to be an Indian national in his seventies.

He reportedly suffered an asthma attack on board and died after.

In response to Mothership's queries, Malaysia Airlines confirmed that a "medical situation" took place on board.

It stated that the passenger was travelling with a family member.

Malaysia Airlines added that when the emergency occurred, immediate medical assistance was provided.

Three nurses, a doctor, and a cabin crew member immediately attended to the passenger and applied CPR.

However, the passenger was unable to be revived, and was subsequently pronounced deceased by the doctor on board. 

Malaysia Airlines did not confirm the cause of death.

"Malaysia Airlines extends its deepest condolences to the family of the deceased passenger. The airline regrets the inconvenience experienced by passengers affected by the disruption to flights MH141 and MH140 and appreciates their understanding," the airline said, adding that it prioritises their guests safety and well-being.

According to The Daily Mail Australia, the New South Wales Police are not investigating the matter.

Being on a company’s payroll without actually doing any work might sound like a dream — you receive Central Provident Fund (CPF) contributions and have all the time to pursue other activities.

But what someone in this position might not be aware of is that they’re now part of an illicit scheme, and their actions are very much illegal.

Individuals like these are called phantom workers. And no, the term doesn’t refer to that one colleague who’s on vacation or MC.

Who are phantom workers?

Phantom workers are locals who receive CPF contributions from an employer, but who don’t do any work for the employer.

These workers are employed in name-only.

But why?

Companies ‘hire' phantom workers for a variety of illicit reasons.

One such reason is to inflate their foreign worker quota — by using local phantom workers, companies won’t have to hire any local workers and pay them their salaries.

Sometimes, phantom workers are also hired to inflate the number of local workers companies hire. This allows the company to take advantage of government benefits or schemes that incentivise employers to hire local workers, such as subsidies or other monetary aids.

Another reason is that phantom workers can also be hired for tax evasion purposes.

CPF contributions made to these workers can be used by the employer to file claims for expenses in their tax declarations. This allows an employer to falsely declare a lower yearly taxable income.

Recent arrests

According to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), those who collude with companies by providing their particulars for fraudulent CPF contributions to inflate foreign worker quotas can be prosecuted for abetment of false declaration.

This carries a fine of up to S$20,000, jail of up to two years, or both.

In July 2026, the MOM arrested 14 people comprising four directors, nine foreign workers, and one key appointment holder from an employment agency.

These individuals are suspected of making fraudulent CPF contributions to 139 locals to bring in workers via the inflated foreign worker quotas, alongside other employment-related offences.

Earlier in April, a similar case occurred where 10 individuals, including directors and employees from five construction companies, were arrested for making fraudulent CPF contributions to locals not under their employment.

They had done so to inflate their companies’ foreign worker quota. These companies then used the inflated quota to make work pass applications to MOM to hire more foreigners.

More recently, on Sep. 2, MOM arrested four people over alleged fraudulent CPF contributions to locals not under employment.

What to do?

If you’re wondering whether you’re a phantom worker, here are some red flags you can look out for.

As employers hiring phantom workers will require personal details such as your Singpass, NRIC or CPF account details, it is possible for you to unknowingly divulge this information without being aware of how they can be misused.

It is also possible for companies to obtain your personal details illicitly without you even being involved.

As such, the solution is to keep an eye on your CPF transactions.

Do not accept CPF contributions from unknown or illegitimate sources. Under the transaction history section of your CPF dashboard, you can track your CPF contributions.

If you spot a CPF contribution from an unknown source, you should investigate immediately.

If it came from an employer you’re not employed under, it could be a sign that the employer has registered you as a phantom worker.

Another sign is if you suddenly find yourself ineligible for certain subsidies due to wages that have been declared incorrectly.

If you are sure that you do not work for them, seek clarification with the employer directly. If they remain unresponsive or cannot be contacted, you can lodge a report to MOM.

Above all, you can simply make sure to never hand out your personal information without first verifying the requestor’s authenticity, especially if they offer you CPF contributions in exchange.

This branded article is brought to you by the Ministry of Manpower.

A 51-year-old man, a Myanmar national, was convicted of forging a divorce certificate and attempting to use it to apply for Singapore permanent residency.

Aung Zaw Moe faced four charges consisting of making false declarations, forgery and charges under the Women’s Charter and Immigration Act.

He pleaded guilty to two charges on Sep. 15, Shin Min Daily News reported.

The two other charges will be taken into consideration during sentencing.

Married

Investigations revealed that Aung was married to a 44-year-old woman in Myanmar.

They got married in 2005.

In 2008, the couple had a son.

In 2011, Aung came to Singapore to work.

He kept in contact with his wife through Facebook.

Aung also provided money for his family's living expenses.

Extramarital affair

In March 2015, he met another woman from Myanmar in Singapore and got into an extramarital affair with her.

The woman agreed to be his mistress despite being aware that he was married and not yet divorced.

By 2019, Aung stopped providing living expenses to his family and stopped contacting his wife.

Some time before February 2023, his wife discovered his extramarital affair and exposed him on Facebook.

Aung attempted to ask for a divorce, but his wife disagreed.

In 2019, his wife came to Singapore to work as a foreign domestic worker.

Forged divorce certificate

As Aung intended to marry the woman he met in Singapore, he asked a friend in Myanmar to help him forge a divorce certificate, which falsely claimed that he was divorced on Jul. 5, 2011.

In charge sheets seen by Mothership, on Mar. 31, 2023, Aung submitted the forged divorce certificate to apply for permanent residency in Singapore.

On Oct. 7, 2025, the woman he was having an affair with discovered that she was 30 weeks pregnant during a health check-up in Bangkok, Thailand.

As Aung deceived the woman with the forged divorce certificate, claiming that he was single, she agreed to marry him.

They decided to register their marriage in Singapore.

On Oct. 23, 2025, Aung submitted the forged divorce certificate to the Registry of Marriages.

On Oct. 30, 2025, they registered their marriage at a flat at Kim Keat, but it was deemed invalid.

As Aung’s wife had discovered the bigamy, on the same day, she contacted the woman's father to inform him that she and Aung were not divorced yet and were still legally married.

After learning this from her father, the woman confronted Aung, who admitted the divorce certificate was forged.

Correction

The prosecution sought four to five months’ jail for Aung.

The judge will decide whether the sentences should run consecutively or concurrently.

During mitigation, the woman he was having an affair with and his wife appeared in court.

It was revealed that the woman had given birth to Aung’s son on Nov. 27, 2025.

Aung’s lawyers sought three months’ jail for Aung.

Aung’s lawyers argued that Aung and his wife had grown apart due to their long-term separation after he came to Singapore for work.

The judge noted that the state of their relationship did not justify Aung’s actions.

Aung’s lawyers reportedly referred to the woman he wanted to marry as his “wife’ and said she had forgiven Aung and was present in court to support him.

The judge immediately interrupted and corrected his lawyers, pointing out that the two were not legally married and that she could not be referred to as his “wife".

Aung pleaded for leniency.

His sentencing was adjourned to Oct. 7.

An American man who was shot thrice after attempting to save one of his friends from a fatal robbery claimed that bystanders filmed him as he bled out instead of helping him.

According to the New York Post, the incident occurred when 21-year-old Matthew Lanske and his friends chanced upon an illegal street takeover in Seattle, Washington.

An illegal street takeover is an event where car enthusiasts gather to perform dangerous driving manoeuvres such as racing and drifting on public roads, typically drawing large crowds.

A man and a woman brandished a gun to rob Lanske's friend, 20-year-old Issac Elijah Rios.

Shot twice in stomach, once in pelvis

Lanske tried to stop the armed attackers but was shot twice in the stomach and once in the pelvis.

According to his family, his intestines were severely damaged and his pelvis was fractured as a result of the shooting.

The New York Post reported that an artery was also hit.

Rios was fatally shot.

Lanske managed to flee, walking two blocks to a 7-Eleven for help but was turned away.

His mother, Shanda Barney, told Fox 13 that bystanders locked the doors and filmed Lanske as he bled out.

Barney said her son begged to be let in as blood pooled out of his stomach:

"He looked at me with tears in his eyes and said, ‘Mom, they wouldn’t let me in. They locked the doors. I begged them to let me, and there was so much blood coming out of my stomach, I thought I was going to die."

On life support in trauma ICU

Two Seattle police officers watched over Lanske until paramedics arrived.

Lanske, who was placed on life support in the trauma intensive care unit (ICU), went through two surgeries, including one to reconnect his intestines.

He woke up from his surgeries to find out that his friend, Rios, was killed, according to the New York Post.

Lanske's sister told local Seattle news station Komo News that he experienced survivor's guilt, having hoped to help his friend, only to wake up to the devastating news.

The New York Post reported that both families are seeking eyewitnesses, and a US$1,000 reward (S$1,275) has been offered for crucial information that may lead to an arrest.

The 71-year-old Singaporean man who sexually abused 11 girls, including his daughter, his granddaughters, and four of his nieces was sentenced to 21 years' jail on Sep. 17.

The four other victims were students who attended an enrichment centre he ran with his wife.

The victims were aged between five to 10 when they were abused.

The abuse took place over three decades, from 1997 to 2021.

The man faced a total of 33 charges.

He had pleaded guilty to 10 of them on Jul. 24, including rape, sexual assault by penetration, committing obscene acts involving a child, and showing pornography to a minor and outrage of modest.

The remaining charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.

The man, who cannot be named due to a gag order protecting the identity of the victims, has been diagnosed with myelofibrosis, a rare form of blood cancer.

Prosecution sought up to 36 years' jail

The prosecution sought a sentence of 32 to 36 years' jail for the man, but the judge rejected it.

According to a report by The Straits Times (ST), the judge said that though his conduct was "most reprehensible", the sentence sought was disproportionate to the man's overall criminality when compared with similar cases.

Taking into account the man's reduced life expectancy due to his terminal illness, the judge ultimately reduced the jail sentence from 26 to 21 years.

This was so that the sentence would not amount to a life sentence, she said.

The offences

Court documents seen by Mothership stated that the man and his wife operated an enrichment centre from 1997 to 2021.

He began sexually abusing his daughter in 1997, when she was about six or seven years old.

He told her not to tell anyone about the abuse, warning that the family would split up and that it would be her fault that her siblings no longer had a family.

His daughter was therefore frightened and did not dare to tell anyone about the abuse.

He subsequently raped her in 2005, when she was 15.

He stopped sexually abusing her after that.

In 2023, the man and his wife stayed temporarily with his granddaughters' family while they waited to move to a new house.

On one occasion during this period, the man showed his older granddaughter a pornographic video before sexually abusing her.

She was aged seven at the time.

He told her not to tell anyone what had happened, or she would no longer be his favourite grandchild.

He also sexually assaulted his other granddaughter, who was five, at the residence during the same period.

The abuse came to light on Aug. 4, 2023, when the younger girl told her mother what had happened.

Her mother subsequently lodged a police report.

Between 1994 and 1996, one of the man's nieces went to his home for tuition and would stay over to play with her cousins.

He began sexually abusing her in 1994, when she was about nine or 10 years old.

On one occasion, she cried after the assault.

In response, the man gave her S$50 and told her not to tell anyone what had happened.

She subsequently made excuses to avoid going for tuition and stopped going sometime in 1996.

In 2012, one of her aunts confronted the man about the abuse of her daughter, who was also one of his nieces.

In 2006 and 2010, the man also sexually assaulted two students, aged six and 10, who attended the enrichment centre he operated with his wife.

His offences only came to light in 2023, after the mother of one of his granddaughters made a police report.

According to ST, the man had previously been jailed twice, in August 1999 and March 2020, for molestation and sexual exploitation offences involving other victims.

An Institute of Mental Health report had earlier also stated that the man has a paedophilic disorder, with a sexual attraction to pre-pubescent girls, and assessed him as posing a danger to children.

Singaporean mum Yanti Lala was on the MRT when she noticed a male commuter who had just boarded approach her direction, eventually choosing to sit on the floor next to her son's pram.

The fellow commuter immediately started eating a bun, which she did not pay much heed to at first, except for a fleeting thought that he was breaking the no-eating rule.

To her horror, the stranger allegedly tried to feed her son his half-eaten bun.

Yanti subsequently posted to TikTok about the incident, which has garnered over 118,000 views at the time of writing.

"We shouldn't normalise feeding [a] stranger's child," she wrote in her caption with an angry face emoji.

Yanti told Mothership that she was travelling from Jurong East to Bukit Gombak on the night of Sep. 11 when it happened.

Her son, Khalis, is 17 months old.

"Happened in a split second"

According to Yanti, she was seated in the priority seat, with Khalis in his pram in front of her, and her other son in the seat next to hers.

She recalls talking to the other son, turning her attention away from Khalis for just a moment.

But that moment was enough for the stranger to attempt the feeding.

"It happened so quickly that by the time I realised what was happening, the pau was already right in front of Khalis' mouth," Yanti said on TikTok.

And Khalis was about to take a bite.

"I immediately screamed and pulled Khalis closer to me," Yanti continued.

"Who in their right mind thinks it's okay to feed a stranger's baby, especially with half-eaten food?!"

Stranger shakes head

Yanti said the stranger looked shocked and gasped when she screamed, with the expression on his face making it seem like she was overreacting.

In the video, Khalis looks at the stranger dressed in a lime green shirt, who continued to eat his bun while shaking his head.

Yanti said she repeatedly told her son "No" and turned the pram away to make it clear he was not allowed to eat the bun.

She noted that besides the hygiene concerns, there was no way of her knowing if the pau was halal.

"We are Muslim, so I am careful about what my children consume and whether the food is permissible for them."

"I wouldn't want my son to be eating anything with [a] stranger's saliva on it," Yanti added.

Did not confront man

Yanti added that she did not have the opportunity to confront the man as her family was already approaching their stop.

She did not report the incident to SMRT or any station staff, noting that it was her first time experiencing a situation like this.

"I don't mind when strangers sayang sayang [show affection to] my children, but to give unknown food to my child? That's a whole new level."

The mother told Mothership separately, "It may seem like a harmless gesture to some, but parents and children have different boundaries, and those should always be respected."

Users online equally shocked

Most users were shocked by the man's behaviour, with many saying there was no way of knowing if the child had allergies without consulting the parents.

Another commented on the man's behaviour, pointing out that he had "the audacity to shake his head."

Other users also noted that the stranger should not have been eating on the train in the first place, and that the man should have been reported to station staff.

According to Rapid Transit Systems Regulations, passengers in trains or stations are not allowed to consume food or drinks.

MRT signs also state that eating or drinking carries a fine of up to S$500.

@yantilala95We SHOULDNT normalize feeding strangers' child.😡♬ Saxophones getting louder - Sped Up - AntonioVivald

A 28-year-old man, an American citizen who is a Singapore permanent resident, was sentenced to two years and three months’ jail for ordering cannabis online.

The contents of the delivered parcel raised suspicions at the SingPost Centre during a screening.

Anton Andrievsky faced one charge under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

He pleaded guilty to attempted drug possession and was sentenced on Sep. 16.

Intercepted

In court documents seen by Mothership, on Sep. 30, 2025, at about 9:20am, an Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officer was conducting screening duties at the SingPost Centre when he noticed anomalies in the X-ray images of one parcel.

A physical inspection was conducted, and two packets of vegetable matter suspected to be controlled drugs were found.

The parcel was referred to the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) for investigation.

One packet, one package with bubble wrap, one pair of jeans and two packets containing loose vegetable matter were seized.

Investigations

Investigations revealed the parcel was posted from Great Britain and delivered by registered mail.

The declared item for delivery was “Jeans”.

The parcel's recipient was listed as a Singaporean woman who previously owned Andrievsky’s residence.

Officers screened the woman, and her registered address showed she did not reside at Andrievsky’s residence.

Entry

On the same day, at about 2:25pm, CNB officers proceeded to Andrievsky’s residence and knocked on the door.

They identified themselves and asked its occupant to open the door.

Andrievsky was alone at the time.

He panicked and did not open the door.

Instead, he texted his girlfriend.

CNB officers detected movement in his residence and gave Andrievsky several warnings to open the door.

He refused to comply.

The officers subsequently effected forced entry into his residence and arrested Andrievsky in his bedroom at about 2:45pm.

Admitted to ownership of parcel

Upon questioning, Andrievsky admitted ownership of the parcel and that it was meant to be delivered to him.

He had ordered cannabis from an unknown seller called “Yaz” via Telegram.

Andrievsky knew Yaz through a Telegram group and said he used his residence’s previous owner's details to order the cannabis, as he did not want to use his own personal particulars.

He ordered the drug from Yaz for his own personal consumption and had ordered from him on three previous occasions.

Andrievsky could not provide details on Yaz beyond his Telegram user ID.

When asked to unlock his phone to show his correspondence with Yaz, Andrievsky said he could not because he had forgotten his password.

He admitted that he had ordered 5 ounces, which is about 140g of cannabis from Yaz.

The drugs were supposed to come in two packets, which contained two different strains of cannabis.

Andrievsky intended to pay Yaz S$2,500 after receiving the drugs.

Cannabis

On Oct. 2, 2025, the two packets of vegetable matter from the parcels were submitted to the Health Sciences Authority (HSA) for analysis.

They were found to contain at least 136.13g of vegetable matter, which was cannabis.

Uncooperative

The prosecution sought 29 to 30 months’ jail for Andrievsky.

They argued that he was uncooperative during the investigation, stating that he had refused to unlock his phone.

They also argued that Andrievsky “deserves no credit for his involuntary desistance” as his offences were a result of ICA’s intervention.

The prosecution also cited his prior offences for drug possession and drug consumption, and that he was sentenced to reformative training (RT) for a minimum period of six months in 2019.

“He clearly has not learnt his lesson and continues to procure and abuse drugs,” they said.

RT is a rehabilitative sentencing option.

According to Singapore Prison Services, young offenders may undergo psychology-based correctional programmes, family and education programmes, employability skills training and personal development programmes, based on their rehabilitation needs.

They are also subjected to a strict regime that can include counselling sessions and foot drills.

A person won a US$1.04 billion (S$1.33 billion) Powerball jackpot in the United States from just a US$2 purchase on Aug. 12.

However, they only came forward to claim their prize nearly a month later.

The winner, who wanted to be anonymous, was in disbelief when they found out they had won, the Illinois Lottery said in a Sep. 15 press release.

"I initially didn’t believe I had won, so I called a family member to confirm it," they told the Illinois Lottery officials.

"Even after claiming the prize, I’m still processing the news and experiencing the full range of emotions that come with winning a billion-dollar jackpot — from disbelief and shock to overwhelming elation."

A S$2.55 Quick Pick

The winning ticket was a Quick Pick with a single line of Powerball numbers, bought for US$2 (S$2.55).

It matched all six numbers drawn on Aug. 12, which were 4, 26, 66, 67, 69 and Powerball 9, People reported.

"I never could have imagined that a US$2 purchase would lead to a US$1.04 billion jackpot," the winner said. "This is truly a blessing, and I’m incredibly grateful for this unexpected and extraordinary opportunity."

The Illinois Lottery explained that the winner spent the past several weeks working with professional legal and financial advisors to prepare for the claim.

They also chose to receive the prize money as a lump-sum payment rather than in annual instalments.

A historic drawing

According to the Illinois Lottery, the US$1.04 billion jackpot was the second-largest lottery prize ever won in the U.S. state of Illinois.

It was also the eighth-largest jackpot in Powerball history.

By the organiser's rules, the winner had 12 months from the date of the lottery drawing to claim the prize.

The Chicago prize centre manager of the Illinois Lottery described the jackpot win as "truly extraordinary".

"It was exciting to finally see this historic prize claimed after nearly a month of anticipation," she added.

The retailer that sold the winning ticket, a Hy-Vee grocery store outlet, will receive a US$500,000 (S$638,000) cash bonus.

A 40-year-old bus driver was allegedly “dragged, pushed and manhandled” by a group of workers while ferrying them from Woodlands back to their dormitory in Jurong on Sep. 13.

The incident occurred after the allegedly intoxicated workers got into a brawl among themselves on board the 49-seater bus, prompting Cai Zhi Feng to pull over and refuse to continue the journey.

According to Cai, the migrant workers then “manhandled” him, forcing him to continue driving.

Videos of the incident were posted on Facebook on the same day by the owner of the bus chartering service, Singapore Bus Charter, Jitesh Dhillon.

Fight broke out on return journey

Speaking to Mothership, Cai said he had picked up the workers as part of an ad-hoc job order to ferry them to and from a company gathering.

At around 10:30am, Cai picked up the workers from Jurong Penjuru Dormitory and drove them to Woodlands Link for the gathering.

He said the journey there "went smoothly".

At around 4pm, Cai picked them up from Woodlands Link for the return journey to their dormitory. He said many of the workers were "heavily intoxicated" when they boarded the bus.

There was no site supervisor on board at the time, he added.

An argument broke out among the workers shortly after they boarded and escalated into what Cai described as a "full bus brawl" minutes after the bus departed.

Driver allegedly "dragged, pushed & manhandled"

"I urged them to stop but no one listened," Cai told Mothership.

He subsequently pulled over and asked the workers to get off the bus, telling them that he could not continue driving safely and would call the police if the fighting continued.

After the bus stopped, Cai said some of the workers "dragged, pushed and manhandled" him while trying to force him to resume driving.

Another photo posted online by Jitesh showed a worker grabbing Cai's face.

He then told the workers that he had called the police and could not safely continue the journey.

Continued fighting outside

The scuffle continued after Cai pulled over.

Another clip showed several workers outside the bus pushing and shoving one another.

According to Cai, the fight only subsided after a supervisor from the workers' company arrived.

He told Mothership that he kept video evidence of the incident and handed it over to the police when officers arrived.

He subsequently left after the police finished speaking to the parties involved.

Mothership understands that there are no current investigations ongoing at this time.

Experienced some pain and discomfort

Though Cai said he did not sustain any "obvious injuries", he said he "experienced some pain and discomfort" following the incident.

"I was frightened because they treated me in a rude manner," he told Mothership.

He added that he did not know if any of the workers were also injured.

To his knowledge, Cai said the workers’ company is conducting an internal investigation into the incident.

As of Sep. 16, the bus driver of 11 years told Mothership he has not received any compensation.

First fight encountered by bus company

Jitesh told Mothership that this was the first fight the company had encountered on one of its buses.

He said he shared the videos "to raise awareness of the situations faced by public service vehicle operators".

However, Jitesh said he was disturbed by some comments on his Facebook post that had turned the incident into a racial or nationality issue.

"This was not why the video was made public," he said, adding that he hoped residents would not use the incident against others.

Jitesh said the company does not wish to pursue the matter further.

He said he hopes the individuals involved will be given a warning and will not be prosecuted.

"We will just take the damages of the bus in our stride and move on from here. We are not looking for any compensation," he said.

Jitesh added that he hopes "better processes and regulations" can be put in place for construction companies ferrying workers when alcohol is provided freely.