The Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) will conduct an islandwide public testing of the SG Alert system for Singtel network users on May 10 (Sunday).During the testing, members of the public connected to the Singtel network will receive an alert on their mobile phones, even without being connected to the internet. This includes foreign visitors on data-only eSIM plans.Members of the public are advised not to be alarmed.The SG Alert will appear as a pop-up notification with the header 'SG Alert', and will be accompanied by a unique alert tone and distinct vibration pattern lasting up to 10 seconds, said the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) on May 6.The alert will also appear if a mobile phone is on «do not disturb» or silent modes while those with older phone models may see the alert appear with a «Presidential alert» header instead of «SG Alert» due to compatibility issues.

A Malaysian driver was arrested on April 15 after attempting to smuggle over 270 cartons of duty-unpaid cigarettes into Singapore. In a Facebook post on Wednesday (May 6) by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA), officers at Woodlands Checkpoint profiled and directed the Malaysia-registered car for enhanced checks. They found more than 270 cartons and 1,600 packets of duty-unpaid cigarettes hidden in various parts of the vehicle.The 35-year-old male Malaysian driver was subsequently arrested in connection with the case. The exhibits and suspect were referred to Singapore Customs for further investigation.Under the Customs Act and the Goods and Services Tax Act, buying, selling, conveying, delivering, storing, keeping, possessing or dealing with duty-unpaid goods are considered serious offences. If found guilty, offenders can be fined up to 40 times the amount of duty evaded and/or jailed for up to six years.Vehicles used in the commission of such offences and proceeds of sales of duty-unpaid cigarettes are also liable to be forfeited.

A Bangladesh national was sentenced to 12 months' jail on Tuesday (May 5) for employing a fellow countryman who had overstayed in Singapore.Jahangir Mohammed, a work pass holder, had failed to duly verify the immigration status of Talukdar Md Pabel, before hiring him, the Immigrations and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said on Tuesday.Pabel, 26, had been in Singapore on a special pass, which expired on Jan 18, 2021. Three months later, he was arrested by ICA for overstaying.Investigations found that he had approached Jahangir for a job, and worked for his company Maa Trading as a rice packer from November to December 2020.In January 2021, Pabel was re-employed as a rice packer by Jahangir at Maa Trading, and also worked as a shop assistant at a minimart operated by Maa Trading until he was arrested on April 20.While investigations were ongoing, Jahangir had coached other employees at Maa Trading to give false statements to ICA officers.Pabel was given one month's imprisonment and three strokes of the cane. He has served his sentence and since been deported and barred from re-entering Singapore.

A Singaporean man allegedly linked to an organised crime group in Cambodia that scammed Singaporeans will be charged in court on Wednesday (May 5).Ngiam Siow Jui, 30, is purportedly in the initial list of 27 Singaporeans and seven Malaysians wanted by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) over their alleged involvement with the group.Police said on Tuesday that Ngiam was arrested by the Cambodian National Police (CNP) in Phnom Penh. He was repatriated to Singapore and arrested on his arrival on Monday.Ngiam will be charged with the offence of facilitating the commission of a serious offence, in furtherance of the illegal purpose of a locally-linked organised crime group.If found guilty, he could be jailed for up to five years, fined up to $100,000, or both.The 34 people's identities were uncovered through investigations and evidence gathering in Cambodia, after a joint operation with the CNP in Phnom Penh on Sept 9, 2025. 

The police received about 1,300 reports of missing persons annually between 2021 and 2025, with the majority of vulnerable missing persons found within the day, said Minister for Home Affairs K Shanmugam.Shanmugam, who is also Coordinating Minister for National Security, was responding to a parliamentary question by MP Fadli Fawzi (Aljunied GRC), who asked how many missing persons have been reported since 2021 and the number of such persons who were found within a month.He also asked if the Government had assessed the feasibility of using the new SG Alert system to send location-based notification of missing persons to mobile phone users in the vicinity of where they were last seen.In his written reply, Shanmugam said the police do not track the time taken to locate a missing person as this can vary significantly from case to case.He added that the police will accord priority to vulnerable missing persons, including young children, elderly persons and persons with intellectual disabilities.

A 44-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of mischief by fire after a blaze broke out in an 18th-floor HDB unit at MacPherson on Monday night (May 4), with eight people taken to hospital for smoke inhalation.In a Facebook post on Tuesday, the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) said it was alerted to the blaze at about 9.40pm on Monday night. The fire engulfed the entire unit at Block 14 Joo Seng Road and was put out with two water jets.Three people had evacuated from the affected unit before SCDF's arrival. The eight injured were assessed for smoke inhalation and taken to Singapore General Hospital (SGH). Two firefighters who felt unwell during the operation were also taken to SGH as a precaution.The police told AsiaOne that a 44-year-old man was arrested at the scene for mischief by fire and investigations are ongoing.

A lucky punter turned a $1 lottery ticket into a $12.8 million windfall after striking the Toto cascade draw on Monday (May 4) night.The winner had purchased a QuickPick ordinary entry ticket online through Singapore Pools, according to its website.The winning numbers were: 7, 18, 19, 30, 36 and 48, with an additional number of 11.With no winners from the past draws, the jackpot had snowballed to an estimated $10 million and ultimately grew to over $12.8 million.A total of 17 winning shares split the Group 2 prize sum of $87,564.The next draw will be held on May 7, with an estimated top prize of $1 million.[[nid:730599]]lim.kewei@asiaone.com

A 22-year-old man will be charged in court on Tuesday (May 5) for his alleged involvement in several cases of loan shark harassment.Police said in a news release on Monday night that they were alerted to such cases at two residential units along Bedok North Avenue 3 and Whampoa Drive, and an industrial unit at Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2.Photographs of the alleged crime scenes provided by the police show the main gates and doors of the affected units splashed with red paint.There were also debtor notes asking the victims to pay up. Offices from Bedok Police Division and the Police Operations Command Centre established the identity of the man through ground enquiries and with the aid of images from police cameras, arresting him within 12 hours of the first report being made.A total of three debtor's notes, one mobile phone and one can of paint were seized from the man as case exhibits.The offence of loan shark harassment carries a fine of between $5,000 and $50,000, imprisonment of up to five years, and up to six strokes of the cane.