Two boxes were found floating down the Kallang River on May 8, 2019.

Coffin spotted floating down river

Those two boxes turned out to be the inner and outer crates of a coffin.

According to The Straits Times (ST), the National Environment Agency (NEA) was alerted to the sighting and removed the coffin in the afternoon on the same day.

NEA's investigations revealed that cleaner Rajasingam Ramasamy was responsible, and that he had "knowingly and wilfully" discarded the coffin.

ST reported that Rajasingam was engaged by a casket company to dispose of the coffin after it was used to repatriate a body to Singapore.

The coffin was meant to be broken up into pieces of wood and disposed of like regular trash, but Rajasingam failed to do so.

In a statement to ST, NEA said on Sep. 28 that the cleaner has since been fined S$2,200 for having "knowingly and wilfully discarded the coffin into the river", causing public alarm.

The maximum sentence one faces for indiscriminate disposal of bulky waste is a S$5,000 fine for a first court conviction.

For subsequent convictions, one may face three months' jail or a S$10,000 fine, or both.

Top image via Legit Singapore's Facebook post.