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Man who allegedly left home 4 times to drink beer among 4 charged with circuit breaker offences

SINGAPORE — Three Singaporean men and a woman, aged between 28 and 65, were hauled to court and charged with various offences allegedly committed during the ongoing circuit breaker period.

Liw Ah Piw, 65, is accused of leaving his York Hill flat without a reasonable excuse on four occasions.

Liw Ah Piw, 65, is accused of leaving his York Hill flat without a reasonable excuse on four occasions.

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SINGAPORE — Three Singaporean men and a woman, aged between 28 and 65, were hauled to court on Friday (May 22) and charged with various offences allegedly committed during the ongoing circuit breaker period.

If convicted, they could be fined up to S$10,000, jailed up to six months or both.

The accused are:

Liw Ah Piw, 65

He was handed four charges under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) (Control Order) Regulations 2020 of leaving his York Hill flat without a reasonable excuse on April 22, 26, May 1 and 2.

He is alleged to have drunk beer while sitting on public benches at People’s Park Complex Food Centre, the walkway at People’s Park Complex, a hawker centre at Block 116 Jalan Bukit Merah, and outside the OG Building along Upper Cross Street.

In court, he claimed in Mandarin that he had already bought the alcohol at a hawker centre but was told he could not drink there, so he “stepped out” to do so. 

“I didn’t know that by doing this, it would be an offence,” he said.

He added that he gets S$250 every month from his Central Provident Fund account and would pay a potential fine with that money. 

He will return to court on June 5.

T Sathish, 28

On April 24, he had allegedly left his Loyang home to go to his parents’ Serangoon North home.

According to court documents, he then allegedly “walked aimlessly and drank alcohol in public areas” before falling asleep at a bus stop in front of Block 106, Lorong 1 Toa Payoh.

The next morning, he is said to have hurled Hokkien vulgarities at a policeman at the bus stop. He also did not have a face mask on.

Later that day, while at the lock-up at Police Cantonment Complex, he scolded more vulgarities at the officer and told him: “You are dead when you come to my camp, I give you (expletive).”

He faces another charge under the National Registration Act of failing to change his residence from his parents’ place to his residence in Loyang.

On Friday, his lawyer Ashwin Ganapathy told the court that Sathish had received a letter from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) asking him to change his address but was told by the police that he could not do it due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Mr Ganapathy added that he will write to the ICA for Sathish to get an exception for changing his address. 

He also said he will ask to view the police officers’ body-worn cameras to better understand what transpired.

Sathish will return to court on June 12 for a pre-trial conference.

T Sathish allegedly left his Loyang home to go to his parents’ Serangoon North home. Photo: Nuria Ling/TODAY

Mohd Yusoff Shaik Alladin, 55

The food handler at a stall faces one charge under the Protection of Harassment Act for scolding and insulting an enforcement officer from the Singapore Food Agency on April 15.

He allegedly told the officer: “Not lowly people like you. Masagos and Teo Chee Hean also talk nicely to me. You lowly people only yaya papaya (colloquial phrase for arrogant). I'm going (to) get you all into trouble.”

He was referring to the Minister for Environment and Water Resources Masagos Zulkifi and Senior Minister Teo Chee Hean. 

The accused told the court through an interpreter that the officer had asked for his identification card but that it was his son who had removed his own face mask.

Mohd Yusoff added: “Then the officer persisted in asking for my IC so I asked her: ‘Why is it people of high level can talk to me nicely but not officers like you?’ Your Honour, I did not say ‘yaya papaya’. I only said she was not polite in her words.”

When District Judge Lorraine Ho asked if he was contesting the charge, he replied that it was “hard to say” and he would plead guilty “if the Government thinks I did wrong”.

He will return to court on June 10.

Mohd Yusoff Shaik Alladin faces one charge under the Protection of Harassment Act for scolding and insulting an enforcement officer from the Singapore Food Agency on April 15. Photo: Nuria Ling/TODAY

Renukha Arumugam, 30

She is accused of leaving her home without a valid reason on April 12 and 17 to meet her boyfriend. 

She allegedly sat with him on a public bench in front of a Clementi West block of flats on the first occasion at about 3am.

On the second occasion, she was caught not wearing a face mask at the entrance of a Clementi West car park.

The police said that on the morning of April 29, she also allegedly visited a supermarket in Jurong West with a friend.

She told the court that she wants to plead guilty and will return to court on June 10.

Renukha Arumugam is accused of leaving her home without a valid reason on April 12 and 17 to meet her boyfriend. Photo: Nuria Ling/TODAY

Related topics

Covid-19 coronavirus circuit breaker breach court crime

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