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A member of the public found the body of a 42-year-old man in the waters off Pulau Ubin on Tuesday morning, Mar. 15, Lianhe Zaobao reported.

Police said they were alerted to a case of suspected drowning at about 11:45am on March 14, near Jalan Watsiam, south-west of the island.

Fishing equipment, clothing and a wallet were found left behind.

Wang, a 65-year-old resident on the island, said he saw a middle-aged man at Puaka Bridge, near Jalan Watsiam, on Sunday morning, according to Lianhe Zaobao in a report a day earlier.

The man was believed to have arrived at the area to fish.

Wang said he was shocked to find out the man had disappeared a day later.

Some 20 personnel from the Singapore Civil Defence Force and National Parks Board were dispatched to search for the missing man on Monday.

SCDF said they received a call for a water rescue assistance on Puaka Bridge at 12:20pm that day.

Rescuers from the Disaster Assistance and Rescue Team used an underwater remotely operated vehicle (ROV), which utilises sonar-imaging equipment to map out underwater terrain, to look for the missing man.

The ROV was deployed as it reduced search time and risks for divers owing to poor underwater visibility.

SCDF called off the search about seven hours later.

The body was found by a member of the public and retrieved by the Police Coast Guard at 8:40am on Tuesday, the police said.

Preliminary investigations do not indicate foul play.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Top photo via Lianhe Zaobao