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17 arrested in Sim Lim Square raid for alleged sale of illegal streaming devices

SINGAPORE — The police have arrested 17 people for suspected involvement in the sales of illegal streaming devices, after conducting a simultaneous raid on several retail shops at Sim Lim Square on Tuesday (Oct 4).

The police conducted a raid on several retail shops selling illegal streaming devices (pictured) at Sim Lim Square shopping centre on Oct 4, 2022.

The police conducted a raid on several retail shops selling illegal streaming devices (pictured) at Sim Lim Square shopping centre on Oct 4, 2022.

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SINGAPORE — The police have arrested 17 people for suspected involvement in the sales of illegal streaming devices, after conducting a simultaneous raid on several retail shops at Sim Lim Square on Tuesday (Oct 4).

Four women and 13 men, aged between 24 and 61, were arrested, the police said in a statement on Friday.

Officers from the Criminal Investigation Department also seized 2,500 illegal streaming devices, which allow consumers to get unauthorised content from illegal sources online. The estimated worth of the devices is more than S$500,000.

Police investigations are still ongoing.

Under the Copyright Act, an infringement by making, dealing, importing, distributing or offering of devices or services to access works without the authority of the copyright owner carries a fine of up to S$100,000 or a jail term of up to five years, or both.

The Act, which was first tabled in Parliament in July last year, enhanced existing copyright laws and was aimed at tackling the sales of illegal streaming devices by both physical and online retailers.

In response to TODAY's queries about online sales of illegal streaming devices, Singapore Police Force (SPF) said on Saturday that "SPF has been monitoring the situation closely".

The police added that they are "working with the respective stakeholders for appropriate actions to be taken against the sales of illegal streaming devices, either at physical retail shops or online".

Listings of streaming devices can be found on online retailers such as Carousell and Lazada.

In response to TODAY's queries, a Carousell representative said that it will only be able to take action against listings of items that “either indicate the ability to facilitate unauthorised streaming/illegal purposes; and/or have been reported to us by intellectual property rights owners”.

“In accordance with the Copyright Act, listings of illegal set top boxes are prohibited on Carousell. Carousell has swiftly removed any such listings from its marketplace.” 

In response to TODAY's queries, a Lazada spokesperson said on Sunday that "Lazada takes a firm stance against the sale of prohibited items, including counterfeits, illegal streaming devices and pirated content".

"We proactively monitor and remove listings of illegal streaming devices, and work closely with the Singapore Police Force... to protect customers on the platform as well as the intellectual property rights owners."

Related topics

crime Sim Lim Square arrest police illegal streaming device copyright

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