January 15, 2021, 10:31 AM
A British national and two Singapore citizens will be charged in court today (Jan. 15) for offences pertaining to Stay-Home Notice (SHN) requirements, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said in a statement.
The British national was placed on SHN at a hotel here, but left his room on three occasions on Sep. 21, 2020, in breach of the SHN requirements.
On the last occasion, he was with his Singaporean fiancée who was not under SHN, but had booked a different room in the same hotel.
He did not wear a mask when leaving his hotel room.
The British national will be charged under the Infectious Diseases (Covid-19 – Stay Orders) Regulations 2020 and Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Act 2020.
His Singaporean fiancée will be charged for an offence under the Infectious Diseases (Covid-19 – Stay Orders) Regulations 2020 read with Section 109 of the Penal Code, for abetting his breach of SHN requirements.
Singaporean returning from Batam to be charged
In an unrelated case, a Singaporean man was served with an SHN upon returning to Singapore from Batam on Mar. 17, 2020.
However, he did not proceed to his declared address that day.
Instead, he took a bus and wandered around Geylang Serai before spending the night at a Bedok housing estate.
He also went to work as a security officer between Mar. 18 and Mar. 24, and did not inform his company of his SHN.
During the 14-day SHN period, he also spent time at various public places.
He will be charged under Section 21A of the Infectious Diseases Act.
Since August 2020, all incoming travellers entering Singapore who are serving their SHN outside of dedicated SHN facilities will need to don an electronic monitoring device throughout the 14-day SHN.
ICA said that those who fail to comply with the SHN requirements, including tampering or removing the electronic monitoring device during SHN, are liable to be prosecuted.
They can be fined up to S$10,000 and imprisoned for up to six months.
Foreigners may also face "further administrative actions" by ICA and the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), which include revoking, or shortening the validity of permits and passes to remain or work in Singapore.
ICA said that members of the public can report information about anyone who fails to comply with SHN requirements to ICA at go.gov.sg/reportshnbreach or by calling 6812 5555.
Follow us on LinkedIn for more stories
Top photo by Matthias Ang
If you like what you read, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Telegram to get the latest updates.