After stealing S$677 cash from her elderly employers, a foreign domestic worker in Singapore transferred most of it to her boyfriend in Indonesia.

She then waited for him at Changi Airport as he had promised to meet and return her the money there, Shin Min Daily News reported.

But he did not show up for a few days.

The helper was eventually arrested at HarbourFront Centre where she tried to take a ferry to Batam.

Depi Lestari, 41, pleaded guilty to one charge of theft on Aug. 25, and was sentenced to four weeks in jail, backdated to the date of her arrest.

The theft

Lestari stole the cash around 7am on Jul. 8 when her employers, a couple in their 70s, were still asleep, according to Shin Min.

Investigations revealed that she decided to steal because she was struggling financially.

She unlocked the male employer's briefcase, got his wallet out, and took S$677 cash from it.

After packing her things, she also grabbed the couple's identity documents from the house before she left.

The female employer realised the cash and the helper were both missing when she woke up at 8:30am. She called the police to report the theft immediately.

Meeting the boyfriend

Around 9:35am that morning, Lestari changed S$654 of the stolen cash to Indonesian rupiah at City Plaza, then transferred this sum to her boyfriend's bank account in Indonesia.

She spent the remaining cash on her own.

Later in court, Lestari explained that she went to Changi Airport to wait for her boyfriend as he had instructed.

After he failed to show up, he apparently told her to take a ferry to Batam first and meet him in Jakarta.

When she went to take a ferry on Jul. 12, she was arrested by the police.

In court, Lestari claimed that she stole from her employers due to severe pressure from her boyfriend.

She expressed remorse for her actions and pleaded for leniency from the judge.

In the sentencing, the judge said that she had betrayed the trust of her employers and had not made any restitution to date.

A 63-year-old Singaporean chef who sexually assaulted an 11-year-old girl in a restaurant with others present was sentenced on Aug. 26 to eight and a half years' jail.

Court documents seen by Mothership stated that Kassim Juhamat, who sexually assaulted the girl for about half an hour, faced a total of four charges.

Charges

He pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual assault by penetration, with three other charges taken into consideration during sentencing.

They include two charges for molesting her and one charge for committing an obscene act with her.

Kassim's jail term includes six months' jail in lieu of caning as he is above 50 years old and cannot be caned.

June 2025

Court documents stated that at the time of his offences, Kassim, then 62, worked as a chef in a restaurant.

The victim, who occasionally visited an individual at the restaurant, became acquainted with the accused and addressed him as "Uncle Kassim".

The girl and the individual's relationship cannot be disclosed due to a gag order to protect her identity.

At about 4:17pm on Jun. 27, 2025, the girl entered the restaurant and sat at a corner table beside Kassim, who was resting at a corner table.

Other staff and customers were present at the time.

Sexual assault

Shortly after, the girl asked Kassim to scratch her lower back as it was itchy.

He then used his left hand to scratch her lower back over her shirt, but later moved his hand under her shirt and asked if he could touch her chest.

The girl kept saying no and leaned her body forward towards the table to prevent Kassim from touching her.

However, he still managed to touch her with his left hand.

Though the girl wanted to leave the table, Kassim held her right hand tightly and kissed her mouth.

While still seated at the table, he moved his hand inside the girl's clothes and sexually violated her.

Later, he removed his hand from her clothes and took her hand to make her do an obscene act.

Court documents stated that "the victim felt disgusted and tried to move her hand away, but the accused held onto her hand tightly".

He also asked her if she wanted to touch him, to which she said "no".

Discovery of offence

It was only close to 5pm that Kassim let go of her hand, telling the girl not to tell anyone what had happened.

The girl wanted to tell someone what had happened, but fell asleep before she could do so.

On Jun. 28, 2025, the girl visited the restaurant, where the individual noticed she was acting differently towards Kassim and repeatedly asked her what happened.

The girl then explained what the accused did to her.

The individual immediately confronted the accused, who initially denied the girl's allegations against him.

He admitted to the allegations only after the individual said that she would report the matter to the police and check the closed-circuit television footage from the restaurant.

One of the restaurant's managers who learnt of what happened, lodged a police report on the girl's behalf.

Arrested

The prosecution called for a jail term of between eight and nine years for Kassim, with an additional six months' jail in lieu of caning.

He was arrested by the police on Jun. 29, 2025, and he remained in custody since then.

Kassim was then charged in the State Courts on Jun. 30, 2025.

A doctor who was accused of severing the wrong arteries during a keyhole surgery has been restricted from performing most types of surgery for 18 months.

54-year-old Singaporean Fong Yan Kit faces a charge of causing the death of his patient by a negligent act.

According to CNA, the coroner's inquiry into the death of 63-year-old Tan Bee Hwa was a result of the procedure, and her death could have been avoided.

During the kidney surgery on Apr. 29, 2022, at Raffles Hospital, he allegedly cut and tied the wrong arteries and finished the surgery without checking if the correct vessels were severed.

Tan's intra-abdominal organs suffered tissue death as a result of inadequate blood supply, and she died on May 2, 2022.

According to the grounds of decision of the Interim Orders Committee (IOC) inquiry published by the  Singapore Medical Council (SMC), the restrictions were sought to protect the public and public confidence in the medical profession, especially since the ongoing proceedings were widely reported in the media.

Surgery

Fong was registered under the Medical Registration Act as a specialist in urology since May 3, 2005 and joined Raffles Hospital in 2006.

On Apr. 28, 2022, at around 3:00am, Tan presented to the Accident and Emergency (A&E) department of the hospital with complaints of pain, blood in her urine and vomiting.

A scan showed a 7.5cm tumour on her left kidney, and Fong advised her to undergo surgery.

He conducted the surgery, but two of the vessels he believed were branches of the left renal artery were actually the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) and coeliac trunk/axis.

The cuts were only discovered on May 1, 2022.

Following the conclusion of the surgery at around 8am, Fong noted that Tan's condition on examination was unremarkable.

However, Tan complained of worsening abdominal pain as the hours went on.

Cardiac arrest

Tan's condition worsened on May 1, 2022, and she presented symptoms of difficulty breathing and low blood pressure; she later went into cardiac arrest twice at around 6:30am and at around 8:15am to 8:30am.

At around 11:40am, a referral was made to a vascular interventional radiologist who reviewed CT scans taken that same day.

An urgent referral was made to a vascular surgeon who advised emergency surgery to rejoin the arteries that were cut.

Emergency surgery commenced at 2:53pm, but the damaged organs were not salvageable.

She died on May 2, 2022, and an autopsy was conducted.

The SMC received a complaint on Jun. 1, 2023, from Tan's daughter regarding Fong's treatment and care.

Council's findings

SMC said in its grounds of decision that Fong's misidentification and deliberate cutting and tying of Tan's arteries raised "serious doubts" about his skill and competence as a urologist.

The SMC added that the surgery was a routine procedure but Fong wrongly identified and ligated Tan's arteries even though they were in their "usual anatomical positions".

"Dr Fong likely has a fundamental misunderstanding and/or misapprehension of the human anatomy, and his mistaken ligation during the Surgery may not have been a one-off, inadvertent error."

The SMC noted that three years after his patient's death at the Coroner's Inquiry, Fong had still wrongly identified the location of the aorta and "initially maintained that his understanding was correct before eventually conceding his mistake".

The SMC added that Fong deviated from the correct sequence of cutting and tying, and the order was described by the coroner as "unfathomable".

SMC stated that Fong had at least three different opportunities to recognise his mistakes and rectify them before the conclusion of the surgery, "all of which he missed".

Fong's case

Fong said he has voluntarily stopped performing major abdominal surgery on patients since Jun. 20, 2022.

He was also placed on an indefinite leave of absence since Mar. 12, 2026, by the hospital after criminal proceedings commenced.

Fong said since March 2026, he has only engaged in clinical practice as a locum at private general practice clinics on an ad-hoc basis.

He noted that he is the sole breadwinner supporting a homemaker wife and four children, with his income suffering a significant drop since 2022.

This was due to his voluntary restriction, and he added that he was prepared not to perform any major abdominal surgery until disciplinary tribunal proceedings against him are completed.

Performed at least 200 laparoscopic surgeries

Fong objected to the SMC's reliance on the coroner's inquiry and said: "It would be incredibly prejudicial and unfair for the SMC to rely on a partial and incomplete account" of a state expert's complete views, as the expert's report was not made available in its entirety to the IOC.

Fong's lawyers also said that in his 20 years at Raffles Hospital he had performed or assisted in at least 200 laparoscopic surgeries.

"He has performed more than 60 open and laparoscopic nephrectomy in the last 20 years, and there has not been a single case of accidental transection of the SMA or postoperative death."

Laparoscopic nephrectomies are procedures that remove part or all of the kidney.

Necessary for restrictions

The IOC said it was necessary for the restriction of not performing any surgery, whether as a primary, secondary or assistant surgeon, for a period of 18 months starting Jun. 17, 2026.

This excludes minor office procedures performed in a primary care setting.

Fong must also inform SMC of all places at which he practices or intends to practice and inform employers hiring him for medical work that his registration is subject to these conditions.

A snake was caught by a Mandai Wildlife Reserve staff in a reptile exhibit at the Singapore Zoo on Aug. 23, as seen in a video circulating online.

The Instagram user who posted the video wrote, "POV: when you're about to step in the reptile exhibition but you heard a visitor told a staff there's a snake outside. My heart skipped a beat."

In response to Mothership's response, a spokesperson from Mandai Wildlife Group shared that it was a wild, non-venomous snake known as a painted bronzeback — a species native to Singapore.

It was not part of the animal population in the Group's care.

The capture

"Guests spotted the snake and alerted our staff, who responded promptly," the spokesperson added.

In the video of the capture, a long, slender snake can be seen slithering along the edge of a glass animal enclosure.

Two staff members were at the scene. One, wearing blue protective gloves, appeared to have a hold of part of the snake's body, while the other employee stood beside her.

Several people, appearing to be visitors, watched from nearby.

Once they had caught the snake, both staff members walked away calmly.

The Mandai Wildlife Group spokesperson said that snakes are generally harmless if left undisturbed, and will typically move away on their own when given room.

In this case, the snake was small and moving fast, so it was at risk of injury in a crowded indoor area, they said.

"Our trained staff safely captured the snake while keeping guests at a safe distance. It was later released back into the wild."

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A post shared by @azulesoctopus

'Let wildlife be'

The spokesperson explained that all the wildlife parks at the Mandai Wildlife Reserve are home not only to the animals under their care, but also to a diverse range of native wildlife that naturally inhabit the surrounding landscape.

Mandai Wildlife Group has protocols in place for wildlife sightings across its parks, the spokesperson assured.

"For everyone’s safety and the well-being of the animal, the best course of action is to let wildlife be and allow it to retreat in its own time," they said.

However, where an animal seems unable to retreat on its own, including situations where it is trapped or in distress, the staff are trained to step in and assist.

UPDATE on Aug. 27, 3:30pm: This article has been updated to reflect the latest developments.

A total of nine Singaporeans were reported missing after devastating flash floods swept through Nepal's border region with Tibet on Aug. 26.

In an official situation update posted on Nepal Tourism Board’s website on Aug. 27, the board said a preliminary agency-wise record received from trekking and travel companies had identified 644 travellers reported missing from affected areas.

Nine of those reported missing are Singaporeans.

"The information is being verified and cross-checked with travel agencies, guides, local authorities and security agencies," the board said.

Local authorities are also working to verify the whereabouts and safety of the missing tourists, it added.

"All efforts are under way to rescue/evacuate the injured and stranded people."

Earlier, two Singaporeans were reported to be among 47 people who remain unaccounted for after the flash floods struck the border region.

According to The Straits Times, the managing director of the tour company, Himalayan Glacier, told AFP that the two Singaporeans were travelling with the group when floods struck.

The group comprises 15 Australians, 10 Canadians, nine Nepalese, eight Americans, two Britons, two Singaporeans, and one Russian-American dual citizen. Two of the total 47 people are children.

Flash floods

According to BBC, at least 160 people have died and hundreds remain missing after devastating flash floods swept through Nepal’s northern border region with Tibet on Aug. 26.

As of the time of writing, the death roll has reportedly risen to 162.

In a statement on Aug. 27, 64 bodies were found in downstream areas in the Chitwan district and another 26 in Nawalparasi East, police said.

28 police officers are also among those still unaccounted for.

In a report by CNA, more than 400 foreigners were among 579 tourists reported missing by the authorities in Nepal.

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV also reported that the tally of missing in Tibet's Gyirong county was 558, of which 260 are foreign nationals.

It is unclear if the figures of the two nations overlapped.

Video footage

Security camera footage from the Nepal-China border area showed a massive wall of water and debris rushing through the area, with people seen running to escape the surge.

BREAKING: At least 380 people missing after flash flood hits near Nepal-Tibet border pic.twitter.com/iCRpXJaBAe

— BNO News Live (@BNODesk) August 26, 2026

Another video circulating online showed passengers inside a bus as floodwaters swept through the surrounding areas.

@nbcnewsVideo shows passengers in a bus in Nepal left terrified as flash floods swept through the area. Hundreds are missing following the devastating floods, including 2 Americans.♬ original sound - nbcnews

In another video, workers could be seen running uphill as a large wave of flood water approached.

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A post shared by Vivek Shrestha (@vivek357155)

Suspected cause of the floods

According to CNN, shaking in the region was initially reported by the US Geological Survey as a 4.4 magnitude earthquake along the Nepal-China border, north of Kathmandu.

At around the same time, what was described as an "avalanche" of ice and rock tore down a mountainside and into the Lhende Khola River, a tributary of the Bhote Koshi River, which flows from China into Nepal through deep gorges.

While the cause of the Nepal flood wave remains to be determined, a team of international scientists believes a huge chunk of glacier sheared off and fell into the valley below.

A Filipino woman, who allegedly travelled to Cambodia for a job but found herself in a scam compound, was sentenced to 25 months' jail on Aug. 24 for being part of a syndicate and a conspiracy to cheat people in Singapore.

According to CNA, the judge said the prosecution had proven its case against De Villar Rizalyn Panganiban, 35, and that she had not been coerced and forced into committing the offences.

Although De Villar faced some restrictions while in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, she had a substantial degree of freedom and could have left the premises or sought help, the judge added.

De Villar was one of 12 people charged in September 2025 after the Singapore Police Force (SPF) and Cambodian National Police disrupted the syndicate in a cross-border operation.

Several Singaporeans and Malaysians were among those charged.

De Villar was the first to stand trial.

Friend allegedly offered her a job overseas

According to CNA, De Villar said a friend had offered her a job in Cambodia with a monthly salary of US$1,500 (about S$1,905).

In late March 2025, she travelled to Cambodia via Malaysia.

Her passport was taken from her and she was driven to a call centre, where she was given a script.

CNA reported her lawyers arguing that De Villar had limited knowledge of Singapore. She denied knowing where Singapore was and said she believed it was in China.

The defence also highlighted that she had never previously travelled outside the Philippines.

However, the prosecution pointed out that she was aware of references to Singapore, and she was also instructed to speak with a Singaporean accent.

The judge said De Villar did not need to know Singapore's geographical location, its status as an independent country, or other characteristics for the charge to be made out.

Instead, the prosecution only had to establish that she knew Singapore was a particular locality or place.

Not shown to be a syndicate member: Defence

The defence argued that De Villar had not been shown to be a member of the syndicate.

Her lawyers argued that simply being present at the compound was insufficient to establish that she was a member.

According to The Straits Times (ST), the prosecution said she had joined the group for financial gain, but accepted she had not successfully scammed any victims because she had failed a test set by the syndicate.

According to CNA, the prosecution said De Villar had undergone training and received money while at the compound.

The judge accepted that the evidence was sufficient to establish her membership.

Although De Villar did not have her passport, she had access to her phone and could have sought help or attempted to leave, said the judge.

Additionally, while she did not pass the test, she participated in activities assigned to her, including training and being part of a chat group.

Prosecution sought at least 27 months' jail

According to ST, the prosecution sought a sentence of at least 27 months' jail for De Villar, describing the syndicate as sophisticated and successful.

They pointed out that they were still having difficulties apprehending high-level members of the syndicate.

According to CNA, within a year of its operations, the syndicate was linked to at least 528 reported scam cases involving losses of S$52.5 million.

The defence sought a sentence of no more than 15 months' jail and asked for a sentencing discount in recognition of De Villar's cooperation with the authorities.

Her lawyer also disputed the prosecution's reliance on the S$52.5 million loss figure, describing it as "nothing more than hearsay" based on the word of the investigating officer.

For being a member of an organised criminal group, De Villar could have been jailed for a maximum of five years, fined up to S$100,000, or both.

For conspiracy to cheat, she could have been jailed for up to 10 years and fined.

A South Korean police officer, who has been implicated after four people reported missing ​on Jeju were found dead over three days, was confronted outside the police station by family of those involved.

A video of the confrontation has made the rounds online.

A Jeju police officer was arrested today for deliberately shutting down missing-person cases — not one or two, but roughly 298 of them. He told families their loved ones were safe, then quietly deleted the cases from the missing-persons system.

The case cracked open because of… pic.twitter.com/1MjHz6MqoS

— ViiV (@ViiV_333) August 25, 2026

Confrontation occurred when police officer was apparently temporarily released

The officer had been taken into custody on Saturday, Aug. 22, reported Korea Times.

This was after the body of a man in his 60s, who had been reported missing, was found that day.

The officer, identified as Sergeant Boo, petitioned the court to review the legality of his arrest, according to Korea Joongang Daily.

He was then released on Monday, Aug. 24, after the court granted his release appeal.

Sergeant Boo was allegedly confronted by the family of those involved.

One person shouted: "Hey, say something!"

They could be seen questioning him and laying their hands on him, as officers at the scene intervened.

One person, who had been held back, eventually broke free and even chased after the car that Sergeant Boo boarded.

The alleged rogue police officer was subsequently detained again a day later.

A court detained the officer on Tuesday, Aug. 25 on suspicion of dereliction of duty, falsifying official electronic records and ​obstructing official duties, Yonhap News Agency reported, according to Reuters.

The officer denied the charges and said he contacted the missing people, the report said, citing a ‌police official.

Jeju is one of South Korea's most popular tourist destinations.

It drew 1.2 million foreign visitors in the first half of 2026, according to the Jeju Tourism Association.

Dead bodies surfaced

The second body, belonging to a man in his 70s, was discovered on Sunday, Aug. 23.

The third and fourth bodies were discovered on Monday, Aug. 24.

The fourth body was that of a woman, 37, who was reported missing 104 days earlier.

Her skeletal remains were apparently found in a hanging position.

Two cases linked to police officer

The four cases of bodies being found are unrelated.

Thus far, the only link is that the same officer allegedly closed two of the cases without confirmation that the missing persons were safe.

The allegations have prompted police to ​review all 298 missing person reports handled by Officer Boo.

About 10 are being examined for possible improper closure, South Korea media reported.

Apologies

The acting national police commissioner Yoo Jae-seong has since apologised, reported Reuters.

On Aug. 26, Interior and Safety Minister Yun Ho-jung also apologised to the bereaved families and the public.

Yun and senior police officials stood and bowed in apology, pledging thorough measures to prevent a recurrence.

A Singaporean man, who made a total of 1,035 silent calls to various police centres within a month, was sentenced to 23 days' jail.

Foo Jia Hong, 37, said he made the calls for fun and enjoyment, according to court documents.

On Aug. 26, he pleaded guilty to one charge of voluntarily obstructing officers at Yishun Neighbourhood Police Centre from carrying out their public duties.

Three other similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.

Used a stolen SIM card

Between Apr. 21 and 23, Foo made 425 calls to the Yishun Neighbourhood Police Centre using an unknown number, remaining completely silent during the calls.

An officer at the police centre lodged a police report on Aug. 25.

Investigations revealed that the unknown number Foo used was linked to a SIM card registered in the name of a foreign worker.

Upon questioning, the foreign worker claimed that he had thrown the SIM card away.

Foo admitted that he had found the SIM card inside a second-hand phone cover he bought at a pasar malam in Ang Mo Kio around early February 2026.

He then did a search and learnt that the SIM card services were cheap and came with substantial call time and data, so he decided to use it.

He would top up the SIM card using his EZ-Link card to continue using the services, including to call the police.

More silent calls

Foo also made more silent calls using an unknown number to three other neighbourhood police centres (NPCs) between Apr. 21 and 29.

The one in Bedok received 308 calls, Geylang's received 278, and Ang Mo Kio's received 24.

Foo later admitted that he had obtained the phones numbers of these police centres from their call directories or leaflets.

Out of the 425 calls that the Yishun Neighbourhood Police Centre received, 330 were answered by officers while the remaining were not picked up.

According to the prosecution, the unanswered calls also resulted in obstruction to the phone lines of the affected police centres as any subsequent phone calls will be put on hold in a queue, preventing other calls from being promptly answered.

Sentencing

After Foo was arrested on May 11, he was remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for psychiatric assessment.

The prosecution, who sought a jail sentence of three to five weeks, noted that Foo has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder and mild intellectual disability.

However, they added that the IMH found no contributory link between his conditions and the offences.

In court, the prosecution also highlighted that Foo had a previous conviction in January 2025 for the communication of false messages, but did not elaborate, CNA reported.

Foo's lawyer urged a more lenient sentence of two weeks' jail, arguing that calling the NPCs was not equivalent to calling the 999 emergency hotline.

In sentencing, the judge explained that the court had to consider the fact that Foo has mild intellectual disability, while the foremost sentencing consideration was deterrence.

A 29-year-old man was arrested for driving under the influence of drugs following a traffic accident along the Bukit Timah Expressway (BKE) on Aug. 25.

Video shows two men struggling on the expressway

In a TikTok video posted on Aug. 25, two men could be seen struggling at the road shoulder along the BKE.

One man appeared to be restraining the other.

The man being restrained could be seen grabbing onto a bridge railing at the side and attempting to pull the other man away before throwing an object over the bridge.

According to the TikTok user's caption, the man had earlier crashed into a Mercedes along the expressway.

The driver of the Mercedes, who provided the user with the dashcam footage, said he noticed that the other driver was "shaking violently with slurred speech" when he approached him after the accident.

The driver also allegedly attempted to flee after realising that the Mercedes driver had called the police.

The Mercedes driver then restrained him to prevent him from leaving, according to the TikTok user.

The Mercedes driver also claimed that the object thrown from the bridge was a Kpod.

In a separate video of almost five minutes posted by the same TikTok user, a black Mazda could be seen swerving between lanes while travelling along the BKE.

The user said the Mazda driver was the same man seen throwing the alleged Kpod over the bridge.

Several motorists appeared to avoid the Mazda as it veered into different lanes and came close to other vehicles.

The video concluded after the Mazda moved into the left-most lane before exiting onto Turf Club Avenue.

@justplay.productionIncident in BKE. 5.45pm 25/08/26. According to party, driver suspected of kp and causing accident. Suspect thrown away kp over bridge. Driver pin down the suspect till SCDF/SPF arrived.

♬ original sound - JustPlayProduction

Driver arrested

In response to Mothership's queries, the Singapore Civil Defence Force confirmed it was alerted to a road traffic accident along BKE towards the Pan Island Expressway (PIE).

It assessed one person for minor injuries, but the person declined to be sent to the hospital.

Separately, the police said they were alerted to an accident involving two cars at around 5:35pm that day.

A 29-year-old male car driver was arrested for driving while under the influence of drugs.

Police investigations are ongoing.

Five minutes to clear immigration was apparently enough to convince a tourist that Singapore is "one of the most efficient countries" he's ever seen in his life.

TikTok user @therealpercius praised Singapore’s efficiency in a 47-second video shared on Aug. 16, comparing his experience here with previous trips to other countries in Asia.

He said immigration took him “a couple of hours” when he visited China and about an hour when he went to South Korea.

In Singapore, however, it took just five minutes.

Strong impression

The tourist, who was travelling with a Spanish passport, said Singapore’s efficiency was apparent beyond the immigration counter.

He praised the MRT system for being “quick, non-delayed” and clean, and also complimented the service he received in Singapore, clearly very different from his experience in Europe.

“Europe...just start taking notes,” he said, claiming that Europe is "more than 20 years behind"

Online sentiments

Some TikTok users agreed with his assessment, pointing to Singapore’s buses as another example, with one commenter noting that commuters can use apps or Google Maps to check when their buses are arriving.

Others joked that Singaporeans may be so used to the country's efficiency that they only realise how good they have it when travelling overseas.

@therealpercius Absolutely INSANE. LOVE THIS COUNTRY! #fyp #singapore #traveltok #weekinmylife ♬ original sound - Percius