Two South Koreans in criminal trespass case repatriated

SINGAPORE — The two South Korean men who allegedly trespassed into the home of the North Korean Ambassador have been issued stern warnings and were repatriated on Saturday (June 9), the police said in a statement on Sunday (June 10).

Meanwhile, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said another person from a South-east Asian country was denied entry into Singapore on Saturday.

Security officers found that he was "surfing websites on suicide bombings", said Mr Shanmugam at a media briefing before a security tour for foreign and local media, as Singapore prepares to host the high-profile summit between United States President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Tuesday.

"We had someone from a regional country who came here, when we looked through his handphone we saw that he has been visiting sites on suicide bombings so we turned him around," said Mr Shanmugam. "He couldn't answer the questions that our (Immigration and Checkpoints Authority) officers asked."

The authorities declined to reveal which checkpoint the man was turned away at.

Last week, former terror suspect Zeky Mallah, 34, was denied entry into Singapore after arriving at Changi Airport from Sydney.

Zeky was denied entry on account of his "terrorism-related antecedents" and was placed on the next available flight back to Australia on Thursday morning, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

Mr Shanmugam said four people have been asked to leave Singapore but declined to comment on the other two cases.

On the two South Korean men who have been repatriated, Mr Shanmugam said: "It is a bad idea in any country to break into ambassadors' residences. Case closed, they have been asked to leave... but as far as I know they are not banned from coming to Singapore."

The men, aged 42 and 45, were with the Korean Broadcasting System News. The media company has apologised for the incident, which took place on Thursday.

Two other men who were investigated for the incident did not commit any offence, the police said on Sunday. They are a 31-year-old South Korean man from the same news outlet, and the group's 29-year-old guide and interpreter.

The police reminded all foreigners to abide by local laws and said those who break the law may have their visas or visit passes cancelled. They may be repatriated.

Members of the media who commit any offence in Singapore will also not be accredited and will be unable to cover the Trump-Kim summit.