SINGAPORE – Police have arrested two youths, aged 16 and 18, in connection to the case of loan shark harassment involving fire at Block 59 Lengkok Bahru on May 1.

A 14-month-old toddler was sent to hospital for smoke inhalation when loan sharks allegedly set fire to his parents’ rental flat unit.

The family had moved in just two weeks before the incident, My Paper reported.

The toddler’s father said that the main door of their flat was set on fire in the early morning.

The police said in a statement yesterday night (May 5) that they established the identity of the first suspect and arrested him at his home on Wednesday. The second suspect was arrested shortly after.

The police said that the duo are believed to be involved in two other cases of loan shark harassment by fire – one in Hougang Street 51 and another in Sembawang Drive, on May 1 and May 2 respectively.

The two teens will be charged in court today. If convicted, they could be jailed up to five years, fined $5,000 to $50,000, and are liable to be caned three to six strokes.

sinsh@sph.com.sg

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Shin Min Daily News, Lianhe Wanbao

HE WAS on his way home when he saw some friends drinking beer near his HDB block. Tan Gak Hin took up their offer to join them – even though it was close to midnight.

He had been warned by police once and made to pay a composition fine on another occasion for breaking the law by drinking in public during restricted hours.

Yesterday, Tan, 52, was fined the maximum $1,000 after he pleaded guilty to consuming liquor in public during prohibited hours (between 10.30pm and 7am).

The case is among the first prosecutions under the Liquor Control (Supply and Consumption) Act, which was passed in Parliament in January last year. The Bill came into effect on April 1 last year.

On Jan 21, Malaysian Siow Hui Lin, 28, was also prosecuted under the new law for allegedly consuming beer at a hawker centre at about 1.25am on May 6 last year. Her case is pending a trial.

A district court yesterday heard that at about 11pm on Feb 22, Tan, whose occupation is not known, met four friends near Block 279 Bishan Street 24 – a five-minute walk from his home.

At 2.25am, someone from the next block called the police to say that there had been shouting in the area for the past half an hour.

A policeman found Tan and his friends on a bench at about 2.40am, drinking beer and reeking of alcohol.

“The (officer) then notified them of the infringement under (the) Liquor Control Act and advised them to dispose of the remaining cans of beer (and) they acknowledged and complied with the directions,” a police prosecutor told the court.

In mitigation, Tan, who did not have a lawyer, told District Judge Ronald Gwee via a Mandarin interpreter: “It was the 15th day of the Chinese New Year. I was on my way home and saw my friends. They told me to join them.

“I was very frustrated with my family (and) I have financial problems so I joined them for a drink.”

The maximum penalty for consuming liquor in a public place during a prescribed no public drinking period is a $1,000 fine on a first conviction. Repeat offenders face a maximum punishment of a $2,000 fine and three months’ jail.

His friends have been given a warning by the police.

amirh@sph.com.sg

Get MyPaper for more stories.

VISITORS, and even residents, who think of Bedok as just another housing estate might reconsider with a new walking trail that reveals nuggets of its history.

A marker at a spot far inland informs visitors that this was where the seashore began, 60 years ago. They will realise then that the East Coast Park was once under the sea.

Another marker takes one back to 1923, when Nobel Prize winner Albert Einstein visited a Jewish community in Singapore and was impressed by the beauty of the coconut palms along Frankel estate.

The Frankels, Jewish entrepreneurs in the textile and furniture industries, also developed the neighbouring Opera Estate, which was home to Singapore’s first president, Yusof Ishak.

Bedok to boast its own heritage trail

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times

These tidbits are among the 10 markers on the 15km-long Bedok Heritage Trail, which explores Bedok’s past as an idyllic town fronting the sea before land-reclamation works began.

The National Heritage Board (NHB) developed this trail as part of the Housing Board’s Remaking Our Heartland plans for the East Coast area.

It is the 15th trail developed by NHB.

Alvin Tan, assistant chief executive, policy and community, at NHB said: “We hope that the trail will raise the awareness of residents and visitors about Bedok’s heritage, pique their interest to rediscover key landmarks in the estate, and instil a sense of pride in them when they learn about Bedok’s role in Singapore’s progress as a nation.”

Members of the Bedok community contributed their stories and artefacts to the project.

Residents welcomed the addition of a heritage trail to their neighbourhood.

History student Danelle Chia, 21, said: “I hope going on the trail will answer my questions on how kampung dwellers were affected by their resettlement into HDB blocks.”

Another resident who has lived in Bedok for 38 years and gave her name only as Mrs Tay, 68, said the trail could help her children understand what the older folks have been through.

There will be guided bus tours for the trail over this weekend at $5 per person.

To sign up, go to: www.heritagefest.sg

sammak@sph.com.sg

Get MyPaper for more stories.

A NEW respository, called MyInfo, will consolidate Singapore residents’ personal data and dish it out on request to auto-fill government e-service forms.

“Citizens often ask why they need to give different government agencies the same data about themselves repeatedly for separate transactions,” said Peter Ong, head of the Civil Service.

He was speaking at the Digital Government Exchange 2016 yesterday when MyInfo was launched.

The Government needs to remove the “inconvenience and friction” in making e-transactions, he added.

Through MyInfo, it is hoped that filling online government forms will be less tedious.

The joint initiative by the Infocomm Development Authority and the Ministry of Finance aspires to include commercial transactions too, such as those for banking.

MyInfo currently pulls data – such as name, NRIC number and registered address – from six public agencies.

These include the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore and the Urban Redevelopment Authority.

The data can be used for a handful of e-services provided by eight agencies for now.

They include the application for or renewal of work permits for domestic helpers, and new public housing and Baby Bonus scheme applications.

The target is to have all 200 government e-citizen services linked to MyInfo by 2018.

Citizens have to register at MyInfo (www.myinfo.gov.sg) using their SingPass accounts, and consent to having their data shared before they can use the repository.

itham@sph.com.sg

Get MyPaper for more stories.