When she saw her mother's face covered in blood on Saturday night, the 10-year-old girl panicked and ran next door to ask for help.

The neighbour, who wanted to be known only as Madam Misnah, 51, told Shin Min Daily News: "She told my husband that her mother had fallen and was not moving, and there was blood on her face."

When Madam Misnah's husband got there, he saw the girl's mother lying in the bedroom in a pool of blood.

She had been stabbed multiple times.

A 37-year-old man has been arrested, said police. He is expected to be charged in court today with murder, which carries the death penalty.

SCENE OF CRIME: The flat in Yishun Ring Road where the woman was found. PHOTO: SHIN MIN DAILY NEWS

Neighbours said the victim, a 29-year-old woman, was his wife.

The incident is believed to have happened at around 8.30pm on Saturday, after an argument.

The woman died eight hours later at 4.26am at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital (KTPH).

Police said they received a call at about 9pm, requesting for help at a unit in Block 342B, Yishun Ring Road.

When they arrived, they found a 29-year-old woman with injuries in the flat.

EVIDENCE: Forensics officers at the scene. PHOTO: SHIN MIN DAILY NEWS

She was conscious when she was taken by ambulance to KTPH.

Madam Misnah said the woman, whom she identified as Madam Sri Idayu Ghazali, was a clerk and that she had moved into the Yishun flat with her family about a year ago.

It was also about the same time that Madam Misnah's family moved in next door and the two families became close.

DAUGHTERS

Madam Misnah said there were eight people living in Madam Sri Idayu's flat - Madam Sri Idayu, her husband, their two daughters, her parents, her sister and a maid.

"The two girls would often come over and play. Whenever we make something special for dinner, we would give them some and they would reciprocate," she said.

She told a Shin Min reporter that before the stabbing, she heard loud arguments coming from Madam Sri Idayu's flat.

A resident who lives upstairs said he heard quarrelling at about 8pm on Saturday.

The man, who wanted to be known only as Mr Lim, said he then heard piercing screams, followed by silence.

Residents said they saw the woman's husband being questioned by the police at the void deck before he was handcuffed and taken away in a patrol car.

This article was first published on Aug 15, 2016.
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JOHOR BARU - Three Singaporeans have been arrested after they verbally abused an immigration officer at the Bangunan Sultan Iskandar Customs, Immigration and Quaran­tine Complex in Johor Baru.

The three - a woman in her 40s and two of her children aged 18 and 19 - were detained after they refused to lower the back window of their tinted car during inspection at the car zone heading towards Singapore at 3.30pm on Friday (Aug 12).

It is learnt that the woman, a businesswoman, started hurling abuses and accusations at the Immigration officer who wanted to inspect the vehicle.

One of them also allegedly showed the middle finger at the officer.

Johor Immigration Department director Datuk Rohaizi Bahari confirmed the arrests and said that they have been remanded for 14 days to assist in investigations.

"It is an offence to hurl abuse at my men who are just following the procedures during checks," he said.

He added that the Immigration Department had nothing to hide and even had visits from the Singapore consulate, as they wanted to meet with the suspects.

"So far our investigation also showed that the officer did not ask for any bribe as alleged by the suspects," he said urging those who were unhappy with his officers to lodge a complaint directly to him.

The three are being investigated under Section 56(1) (g) of the Immigration Act which carries a maximum of RM10,000 (S$3,350) fine or imprisonment not exceeding five years or both.

News about the arrests has been widely spread via Facebook with pictures of the family in handcuffs and personal details online.

It is learnt that the two children are studying in a private college in Johor Baru.

SINGAPORE - Billowing smoke that spread alarm at an underground train station in central Singapore on Monday was apparently caused by a technical fault, media reported.

Authorities have called for vigilance since Indonesian police arrested six suspected Islamist militants on Aug 5 on suspicion of plotting an attack on Singapore.

Videos on social media showed commuters rushing out of a train at the Tanjong Pagar station, covering their noses to protect themselves from grey smoke.

Huge plumes of smoke out from the train that pulled into Tanjong pagar mrt station! pic.twitter.com/MCncDJVSkD

— ZOE RAYMOND (@zoeraymond) August 15, 2016

Some of them were seen taking pictures on their phones.

"Once the train doors opened, smoke was billowing out from the gap between the platform and the train. There was not much of a smell, but my first thought was 'what if there's a terrorist attack?'," the Today newspaper quoted 38-year-old commuter Jason Wang as saying.

"When the other commuters saw the smoke, they all quickly started running out."

Not sure what just happen here at Tanjong Pagar MRT!! pic.twitter.com/APiKRGVcx2

— اسوادي روس (@IswadiRos) August 15, 2016

Commuters later said the train operator broadcast an announcement of a technical fault, the newspaper said.

A statement from the Singapore Police Force today to AsiaOne said: "The Police received a call today at about 3pm, requesting for assistance at Tanjong Pagar MRT Station. Upon arrival, smoke was seen coming from the platform gaps of a stationary train.

"Detrainment of the affected train was carried out and no injuries were reported. SMRT is investigating the cause of the smoke and the train has been towed to Ulu Pandan Depot for inspection. The Police are looking into the matter."

The Channel NewsAsia television station later said on its website train services have resumed.

SINGAPORE - Kingsmen Creatives Ltd (Kingsmen or the Group), a leading communication design and production group, on Saturday organised a Charity Walk & Bike event, to raise funds for Students Care Service (SCS), in support of their programmes for marginalised youth.

SCS is Kingsmen's official Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) partner for 2015 - 2016, and both parties have collaborated to build closer relationships with the less privileged and foster a more caring society.

Embracing design and sports, Kingsmen's multi-disciplinary designers from over seven countries came together to show the SCS youth the limitless potential of creativity through the individual customisation of 50 bicycles which were presented to them by the guest-of-honour Dr Janil Puthucheary, Minister of State, Ministry of Communications and Information & Ministry of Education and Kingsmen's management team.

The event was held at Bay East Garden (Promenade Lawn) and featured a 20km cycling route and 5km walk.

As part of Kingsmen's CSR programme with SCS, the Group embarked on the upgrading of the Hougang centre, where the student activity hall was refurbished to create a fun and conducive space for the students to hang out in, and invested time, resources and rallied its staff to participate in various SCS activities such as Go for Goal! and Sports Mania - a community engagement project that involved the youth from the organisation and Kingsmen.

In addition, a charity golf event was held in June to raise funds for SCS. Together with the Kingsmen Charity Walk & Bike 2016, the two events raised over $350,000 for SCS thus far.

Mr Benedict Soh, Chairman of Kingsmen, said "We are pleased to be involved in such a worthy cause, one that seeks to maximise the potential of youth and their future. As a group, we are committed to giving back to the communities in which we operate throughout the region. I am heartened to see our staff dedicating their time and energy to participate in the activities."

Dr Ang Seng Bin, Chairman of SCS, mentioned "Kingsmen's growth over the last 40 years is phenomenal and the Group's pursuit of quality and customer-centricity resonates strongly with SCS' core values. We are privileged to be Kingsmen's official Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) partner for 2015 - 2016. This partnership has strengthened SCS' position in serving the youth within our community.

"Funds raised from Kingsmen Charity Golf and Saturday's Walk & Bike event will enable us to continue providing quality programmes and services for youth who are in need of support. We would like to thank Kingsmen for its support and we look forward to future collaborations."

The construction of the Maxwell MRT station, which kicked off early last year, has affected the business of Maxwell Food Centre, with at least 10 stalls closed down and their replacements finding it hard to stay afloat, Shin Min Daily News reported.

The main reason for the dwindled patronage at the food hub, located at the junction of Maxwell and South Bridge roads, is the closure of the carpark at neighbouring Erskine Road in March last year to make way for the MRT facility.

The carpark could accommodate more than 100 vehicles.

As most of the regular customers come in cars, the lack of parking space has made the place their less frequent choice to visit for dining, the Chinese evening daily pointed out.

The newspaper also noted that the centre's main entrance facing South Bridge Road is sealed off to block the dust from the MRT works.

That means most customers have to take a longer way round to get to it, which further weakens its attraction.

Noticing that the stallholders were suffering some knocks in their business, the Government granted a 25 per cent rental rebate to the 103 stalls early this year.

However, many of the stallholders whom Shin Min spoke to on Sunday said the benefit could not make up for the fall in customers.

Some disclosed that in the past 18 months, about 10 stalls had closed.

And the people who took over could not sustain the business for long, with many pulling out within a month.

Some even wound up in a week, they noted, as business was bad.

Shin Min noticed that some of the stalls were vacant and apparently not taken up by anyone at the moment.

According to stallholder Ng Kok Hua, who represents the food centre, they have managed to persuade the Urban Redevelopment Authority, whose building stands next door, to agree to open its carparks on weekends and after 7pm on weekdays to their customers.

However, the 60-year-old seller of ngoh hiang, a sausage-like Chinese delicacy, sees the concessions as still inadequate.

"We hope the carparks can be opened even two hours earlier for our customers," he said.

"We really need help to tide over the next five years. Our regular customers are our life line."

The Maxwell MRT station, an underground stop on the Thomson-East Coast Line located around Kreta Ayer Heights and Chinatown's Buddha Tooth Relic Temple and Museum, is scheduled to be completed in 2021.

Many local delicacies at the Maxwell Food Centre are famous for their special and traditional flavours, such as chicken rice and porridge.

To boost business, the food centre would install an electronic machine every Hungry Ghost Festival - which falls around this time every year - to allow customers to seek "lucky numbers" to try out their chances in Toto and 4-D lotteries.

"Our patrons at noon are mostly young people. This machine perhaps can help attract more of them here," said Mr Ng.

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Olympic champion Joseph Schooling got up bright and early for a visit to his alma mater Anglo-Chinese School (Junior) at Winstedt Road on Tuesday morning (Aug 16), local media reported.

He studied there from 2002 to 2007, and spent another two years studying at Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) before moving to Bolles School in Florida, US in 2009.

According to The Straits Times, Schooling greeted former teachers and joined his juniors during morning assembly, with the excited pupils chanting "Let's go Schooling!" as the ACS old boy entered the school hall.

The 21-year-old swimmer shared his dreams and aspirations with the pupils:

"What I realised is that you can't sell yourself short. It's great to achieve your goals, but you can't be content with achieving your goals for too long."

"You've got to move on and shoot for bigger and better things," he added.

When asked about the toughest training he had done when he was in primary school, he replied: "We had to do 30 sets of 100 fly, but we ended up doing only 20, that was the hardest (set) I've done and I failed miserably. I fail more than I succeed."

In a video clip on Twitter, Schooling was also seen sharing his gold medal with two young pupils on stage. The audience cheered when one of the boys passed it on to his schoolmate.

Schooling won a gold medal in the men's 100m butterfly final at the 2016 Olympic Games, beating swimming legend Michael Phelps. He also set an Olympic record of 50.39 sec in his event.

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, Reuters, AFP

The swimmer was given a standing ovation for his sporting achievements in Parliament on Monday afternoon (Aug 15), and also received a big homecoming earlier that morning by hundreds of fans at Changi Airport.

Schooling will spend about four days in Singapore before returning to the United States to continue his studies on Friday.

He said that he is seeking permission from his university to stay longer in Singapore for the National Day Rally, which will be held this Sunday at 6.45pm.

Hundreds give Joseph Schooling triumphant homecoming at Changi Airport

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, AFP, Reuters, The New Paper, Hannah Alkaff, Lianhe Zaobao

minlee@sph.com.sg

Singapore lawmakers on Monday night passed the Administration of Justice (Protection) Bill, after seven hours of heated debate.

Law Minister K Shanmugam single-handedly took up two-and-a-half hours of that time, using two lengthy speeches to debunk criticism that the Bill was rushed into Parliament, curbs freedom of expression, and places the government above the judiciary.

The Bill - passed with 72 votes "for" and nine "against" - puts in writing contempt of court laws that have until now been left to the courts to define. It sets out the types of conduct which amount to contempt of court: disobeying court orders, interfering with court proceedings, sub judice contempt (where ongoing court proceedings are prejudiced as a result of comments), and scandalising the court.

Explaining the government's decision to include contempt law in the statutes - despite the Law Ministry's assertion that "the boundaries of contempt ... will not change" - Mr Shanmugam said that it is "not satisfactory" to have this as the only criminal law in Singapore that is based on case law.

Rejecting claims that the government had rushed the Bill into Parliament without sufficient public consultation, Mr Shanmugam said the genesis of the Bill was six years ago, when former chief justice Chan Sek Keong mooted the enactment of such a law. He added that the six-year timeframe was long by Singapore's standards.

Mr Shanmugam reiterated that stakeholders such as the Judiciary, the Law Society of Singapore, academics, and media practitioners had been consulted prior to the tabling of the Bill. He also said that according to a "scientifically-valid statistical survey" by the government, a "very substantial majority" of respondents supported the Bill. Without the survey on hand, however, he was unable to quote the exact figures.

Read also: Minister slams UK High Comm for improper comments

Still, he noted that only 249 members of the public had signed an online petition seeking to delay the passage of the Bill, on the grounds that it may restrict the legitimate discussion of issues that are of public interest.

Several online commentators and Members of Parliament (MPs) had also expressed concern that the government was attempting to limit citizens' freedom of speech - fearing that they would run afoul of the law by simply commenting on a matter before the courts. Representing several opposition MPs' views, Non-Constituency Member of Parliament Dennis Tan characterised the Bill as an "unjust and draconian piece of law".

But Mr Shanmugam shot down such perceptions as "untrue", stating that "the law tomorrow is the same as the law yesterday" when it comes to one's right to criticise judgments and policies, and disagree with rulings.

Mr Shanmugam said the new law does not affect what people have already being doing - unless they decide they want to start publicly attacking witnesses, attacking judges, and trying to get certain results from the court.

He stressed that public discussions are not prohibited per se, and that the question is whether such discussions prejudice court proceedings or pose a real risk of doing so.

Indeed, the crux of Mr Shanmugam's message was that the government has consciously chosen to stick to the law as developed by the Singapore courts, except for one change - where the threshold for being in contempt by scandalising the court has been lowered. Previously, for a statement to be in contempt, it had to have a "real risk" of scandalising the judiciary. Now, the word "real" has been dropped.

He also dismissed the notion that opinions aired over coffeeshop talk or Facebook updates could be considered contempt.

"If the law yesterday is the same as the law tomorrow, have you seen anyone being charged for sitting in a coffeeshop and talking about cases? You know, I think we want a debate that engages honestly on the facts," said Mr Shanmugam, chiding those who had suggested that one could now be in contempt just by making a comment to a friend over a meal.

"I'll tell you when someone sitting in a coffeeshop discussing a case could be in contempt. If you catch hold of a witness, have a beer with him, and try and influence him or threaten him in the coffeeshop, that will be contempt. But if you sit with your friends and talk to them about a case, how do you think it impacts on any case?," asked Mr Shanmugam, urging MPs to "get real".

He also firmly rejected speculation that the Bill places the executive branch above the judiciary. Critics had taken issue with a clause containing an exception to sub judice contempt, which states: "A statement made by a person on behalf of the government about the subject matter of or issue in a pending court proceeding is not contempt if the government believes that such statement is necessary in the public interest."

Mr Shanmugam tried to allay those fears by stating: "I confirm for the record (that) the courts are the final arbiters ... as to whether the power of the executive was exercised in accordance with the clause." He said that this has to be the case "if the rule of law has got any meaning".

As for suggestions to amend the bill so that contempt is actionable only if it "seriously prejudices" the court proceedings - as opposed to simply having prejudiced them - Mr Shanmugam said: "This is not right."

"Think about it: A person is a defendant in a criminal trial. He could face years in prison. Do we really want to say it is okay to prejudice his right to a fair trial? What happens to the presumption of innocence and the basic right to a fair trial?"

This article was first published on Aug 16, 2016.
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Plumes of "smoke" came out of a train when the doors opened after it pulled into Tanjong Pagar MRT station yesterday.

It filled the station as commuters rushed out, their hands cupped over their mouths and noses.

Passenger Sophia Kee told The Straits Times Online that the cabin she was in became "smoky" during the journey between Raffles Place and Tanjong Pagar stations.

Huge plumes of smoke out from the train that pulled into Tanjong pagar mrt station! pic.twitter.com/MCncDJVSkD

— ZOE RAYMOND (@zoeraymond) August 15, 2016

It appeared to be "coming from underneath the train", between the train and the tracks, and filled the train and the station, she said. "It was really strong, thick smoke."

The 30-year-old environmental designer told ST that she and the other passengers did not know what to do when the train stopped and the train doors opened.

"We did not know if it was more dangerous on or off the train," she said, adding that the "smoke" made her cough.

Not sure what just happen here at Tanjong Pagar MRT!! pic.twitter.com/APiKRGVcx2

— اسوادي روس (@IswadiRos) August 15, 2016

She also said that there were no announcements telling passengers what to do while she was there.

After about a minute, Ms Kee decided to get off the train and walk to her office in Outram Park.

As she left, she saw SMRT staff members arriving to help the passengers.

Another commuter, who did not want to be named and who was at the platform when the affected train arrived, told The New Paper that the SMRT staff members asked everyone to stop taking photographs and videos.

Police on patrol also began ushering people to the concourse.

The incident was captured on video by several passengers and shared on social media platforms.

'Smoke' fills MRT train and station

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Stomp, The Straits Times

REDUCED VISIBILITY

SMRT later clarified that the "smoke" was freon gas that had leaked from the train's air-conditioning system.

It said: "The discharge of freon into the tunnel reduced visibility at parts of the station when the platform screen doors were opened for passengers to exit the train."

SMRT staff responded by immediately switching on the tunnel ventilation system to disperse the gas.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force, alerted to the incident through a video submitted by a commuter, sent firemen as a precautionary measure.

It said there was no fire detected at the platform and there were no signs of smoke.

The passenger who spoke to TNP said that she, along with others, got on the next train that came five minutes after the affected train left.

On her way to Tiong Bahru MRT station, she continued to see "smoke" coming towards her cabin from the front of the train.

She said: "It was a little unbearable in the train because of the smoke but most commuters were calm and simply covered their mouths and noses."

Police said the affected train had been towed to Ulu Pandan Depot for inspection.

In its statement, SMRT said the passenger platform at Tanjong Pagar MRT station remained in service during the incident and that train services were not affected.

It also apologised to affected passengers and said that it would be investigating the cause of the incident.

Expert: Scene looks scarier than it really is

Freon, the gas that caused the scary scenes at the Tanjong Pagar MRT station, is not particularly hazardous, said an A*STAR director.

Dr Keith Carpenter, executive director of the Institute of Chemical and Engineering Sciences in A*STAR, said freon is a trade name for a range of gases.

These gases are virtually odourless, non-flammable, inert and not particularly hazardous.

They are mostly in liquid form as refrigerants in fridges, freezers and air-conditioning units.

Dr Carpenter said: "What you see in the video happened because when released, freon is vapourising and cold."

In general, exposure to the gas needs to be at above 10 per cent in air and for a prolonged period for it to have major health effects.

"The incident looks dramatic, but it really looks scarier than it really is," he added.

This article was first published on Aug 16, 2016.
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A centralised refuse-collection centre in the Civic District was delivered satisfactorily and at an acceptable cost, National Development Minister Lawrence Wong said yesterday as he addressed the controversy over the high fees paid to the consultant of the project.

He pointed out that the Auditor- General's Office (AGO) did not conclude the consultant was overpaid, but was instead concerned about how the fees paid were assessed.

Mr Wong was responding on behalf of Minister for Culture, Community and Youth Grace Fu to a parliamentary question from Nominated MP Kok Heng Leun. Ms Fu is in Brazil at the Olympic Games.

The National Arts Council (NAC) had come under fire over the bin centre after the AGO's annual report on public spending flagged the issue of the consultancy fees.

The AGO noted that the $410,000 paid to the consultant came up to nearly 90 per cent of what was paid to build the bin centre, which cost another $470,000.

Mr Wong said the scope of the consultant's study was much wider than was typical for a bin centre, as an extensive feasibility study had to be done due to the historic nature of the buildings.

The original plan was to have a standalone bin centre for Victoria Theatre and Victoria Concert Hall, but it was later decided that a centralised centre that served other nearby buildings as well would be more suitable.

Moreover, the consultant's quotation was assessed to be within the range of such fees for other complex projects in the area, he said.

The consultancy cost was 8.7 per cent of total costs to redevelop the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall.

Mr Wong said this was within the industry benchmark of 10 per cent.

He added that the consultant had also helped to bring down the construction costs to $470,000, through "extensive value engineering". The project's contractors had initially quoted $890,000.

When asked by Ms Lee Bee Wah (Nee Soon GRC) if the ministry would have decided differently in hindsight, he said it would have made the same choice.

Mr Wong added that as it was not clear at the start what form the final refuse centre would take, and how much it would cost to construct, the NAC had decided against pegging the consultancy fees to the project cost. Instead, it paid a lump sum to "limit any potential escalation of costs". He acknowledged that detailed documentation should have been provided to clearly explain the scope and complexity of the project, and pledged that this would be done in future.

This article was first published on Aug 16, 2016.
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With his trial drawing to a close, a former tour guide accused of criminal breach of trust is considering for a second time if he should throw in the towel.

Yang Yin's lawyer, Mr Irving Choh, told reporters yesterday his client is thinking about whether to plead guilty or continue to fight the charges against him. Yang had asked to meet his lawyer after the cross examination yesterday.

This is not the first time the 42-year-old, charged with allegedly misappropriating $1.1 million from widow Chung Khin Chun, is wavering in his defence. He first indicated that he wanted to enter a guilty plea on July 8, the fifth day of the trial. But three weeks later, he told the court that he had changed his mind as he had more evidence to show.

Tussle over widow's $40m assets turns ugly

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, Madam Hedy Mok, Lianhe Wanbao, Madam Chang Phie Chin, Court Documents

Yesterday, Yang also asked Deputy Presiding Judge of the State Courts Jennifer Marie if he could leave Changi Prison to accumulate more evidence for his case.

"I just want Your Honour to approve my request because I wish to leave Changi Prison and see if I can find more evidence," said Yang, who has been in remand since October 2014 after being denied bail.

Judge Marie rejected his requestand said if Yang needed more evidence, his lawyer could advise him.

Doctors at the Changi Medical Complex had also certified he was well enough to proceed with the trial, she said. The judge had adjourned the hearing on Aug 5 for Yang to be examined by doctors. The Chinese national had wanted to stop testifying, saying he was stressed and physically and emotionally unwell.

The medical examination, however, showed that while he was suffering from acute stress disorder, he was well enough to take the stand.

Midway through cross-examination by the prosecution yesterday, Yang was seen rocking back and forth.

The prosecution continued to point out inconsistencies in his statements over the money he had allegedly siphoned from the 89-year-old widow - $500,000 in 2010 and $600,000 in 2012.

Yang said in court yesterday that $500,000 was transferred to his father's account in China in order to pay debts incurred for his grandmother's medical bills. She died in 2008, Yang said.

Tussle over widow's $40m assets: A look at Madam Chung’s bungalow

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, Raymond Tan

The prosecution, however, charged that this was a "fabrication" and produced a receipt dated March 1, 2010, which showed that Yang had used $500,000 to buy a painting of a horse by Chinese artist Xu Beihong. Yang had mentioned the painting in his police statements, but later told the court it was a cover-up.

He said he did not buy the painting, but said he did only because Madam Chung wanted to avoid jealousy in case relatives found out large sums of money were given to him.

In May, Yang pleaded guilty to 120 other charges, most of which involved falsification of receipts to make it appear that a business he set up was real.

The trial continues today.

This article was first published on Aug 16, 2016.
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A 37-year-old man was on Monday (Aug 15) charged with the murder of his wife in Yishun.

Mohamad Jonit Adnan is accused of causing the death of Ms Sri Idayu Ghazali, 29, at about 9pm on Saturday at Block 342B, Yishun Ring Road.

The charge of murder with intention, which carries the mandatory death penalty, was read out to Jonit in Malay by a court interpreter.

District Judge Christopher Goh granted the police prosecutor's request to remand Jonit for a week at Central Police Division, with permission to be taken out for investigations.

Clad in a red polo T-shirt, Jonit showed little expression in the dock and nodded his head as the judge spoke.

He did not have a lawyer.

The case will be mentioned again next Monday (Aug 22).

It is not known how Jonit carried out the killing.

According to The New Paper, Ms Sri Idayu was a clerk who moved into the flat about a year ago with her family, including two daughters, her parents, her sister and a maid.

Neighbours reportedly heard loud quarelling from the unit at about 8pm on Saturday and then, loud piercing screams, followed by silence.

In a statement on Sunday, the police said they received a call for help at about 9pm on Saturday.

Officers found Ms Sri Idayu injured and she was taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital where she was pronounced dead at about 4.30am on Sunday.

This article was first published on Aug 16, 2016.
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Law Minister K. Shanmugam has rapped the British High Commission here for urging countries, including Singapore, to abolish the offence of scandalising the judiciary - and accused it of improperly trying to influence parliamentary debate.

He said it was "quite astonishing" that the British High Commission should try to give Singapore advice to follow Britain in abolishing its laws on scandalising the judiciary, and questioned if the commission was aware of the facts that led to Britain's own decision to scrap them.

Singapore today is in a different position from Britain when it did so in 2013, he said.

"We are upholding standards that have gone down in Britain; standards which have gone down, and have led to a loss of respect and coarsening of society."

The British High Commission told Reuters last Friday that Britain "will continue to urge Singapore and all countries which retain 'Scandalising the Judiciary' to abolish it".

Mr Shanmugam said Britain had to abolish the offence three years ago because its judiciary had "lost the deferential respect it used to enjoy", as evidenced by plentiful online material hurling abuse at the judges.

"The offence had limited symbolic value, as everyone was scandalising the court anyway. It was happening frequently, and was rarely prosecuted."

And while the offence was also "in principle an infringement of freedom of expression" - a basic right under the European Convention on Human Rights - the key reason for abolishing it was that the court's standing was already damaged in the public's view, said Mr Shanmugam.

Such damaged reputation has affected the British judiciary and its work, said the minister, quoting from a 2014 survey of all serving and salaried judges there.

Nearly two in three had said members of the judiciary there were less respected by society compared to a decade ago, and more than half felt the way they were portrayed in the media, and public misunderstanding of the judiciary were factors driving this change. Falling judicial morale has also made it harder for Britain to recruit and retain judges, especially senior ones.

But Singapore does not have this problem as it tries to retain the prestige of the judiciary, keeps it well-resourced, protects it from being scandalised, and ensures its judges are paid properly, said Mr Shanmugam.

"We are in a healthy, good and enviable position, and we are not about to short-change our judiciary," he said. "We are not struggling, or swimming against the tide of public opinion, as Britain was."

He added: "Did the British High Commissioner know these facts when the advice was offered? If the High Commissioner knew the facts, then that does not speak well of them because we are not in the position Britain found itself in."

Mr Shanmugam said that when Singapore's Foreign Ministry asked why the British High Commission made the remarks, High Commissioner Scott Wightman said it was a reply by his press officer to Reuters' query, and was not specific to Singapore.

Said Mr Shanmugam: "With the deepest respect to the High Commissioner, one can only say there is considerable disingenuity in that answer. If you want to intervene and make a comment, then at least have the courage of your conviction and not beat a hasty retreat at the first question."

He added: "Did the British High Commission see fit to make such comments to the Australians? To the New Zealanders? To the Irish? They also criminalise scandalising the court."

When contacted, the British High Commission declined further comment.

This article was first published on Aug 16, 2016.
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A local company, whose subsidiary is aiming to become Singapore's fourth telco, has been fined $300,000 for signing an unauthorised agreement to sell the Sports Hub's telecommunications system to another company.

The Infocomm Development Authority (IDA), the sector's regulator, said Consistel breached its licensing obligations by failing to seek the regulator's approval before signing the sale agreement, and submitting false information to IDA.

The authority has also filed a police report against Consistel over the latter's alleged offence.

Announcing the fine yesterday, Ms Aileen Chia, IDA's director- general of telecoms and post, said the Sports Hub is "a building of national significance".

Consistel is the exclusive host of the Sports Hub's wireless systems, including 3G and 4G equipment.

In the first arrangement of its kind here, it leases the use of the equipment to the three local mobile operators: Singtel, StarHub and M1.

Consistel's system is critical to connections throughout the 35ha facility, including event venue and retail spaces.

So it is the IDA's duty to scrutinise any change of ownership to protect the public's interest, said Ms Chia.

In October 2013, Consistel entered into an agreement to transfer ownership of its equipment at the national sporting venue to Consistel Sprint, a joint venture with its investor Asia Networks.

The value of the deal was not disclosed.

It applied for approval from the IDA only in June 2014.

Consistel also submitted false documents, which the IDA said was "a deliberate act" to mislead the authority into thinking the sale agreement had yet to be signed.

The IDA started investigating after receiving a tip-off from directors at Consistel Sprint in January this year.

It declined to elaborate further.

It is also not clear if the asset in question has been transferred to Consistel Sprint.

Ms Chia said Consistel's actions constitute "the most serious instance" of "grave misconduct" by a telecommunications licensee.

She added that the fine was meant to serve as a reminder to all licensees to act with "integrity, honesty and transparency".

Mr Terence Tan, a lawyer at Alpha Law advising on corporate matters, said: "If the allegation of falsification of information is true, it may constitute an offence under the Penal Code.

"If false information is submitted with planning and premeditation, it makes the offence more serious."

Analysts said the news could not have come at a worse time for the company, whose unit OMGTel is a candidate to operate Singapore's fourth telco.

Mr Ramakrishna Maruvada, a telecoms researcher from Daiwa Capital Markets, said potential mobile entrants already face significant barriers, chiefly financing.

"Now more odds are stacked against Consistel," he added.

Potential mobile entrants must submit their applications to the IDA by Sept 1.

The regulator will consider, among other things, the applicants' track records before allowing them to participate in the upcoming auction for 4G airwaves.

Mr Ong Sing Jye, Consistel's managing director, said it takes the IDA's findings seriously and has commenced an internal review. He added: "We are considering all options, which includes appealing."

OMGTel said it is pushing ahead with its plans to become the fourth telco.

Its chief executive officer Michael DeNoma said: "OMGTel has a broad, international set of investors coming together for... delivering breakthrough subscriber offerings."

This article was first published on August 16, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

SINGAPORE - SMRT said on Tuesday (Aug 16) that it will refurbish escalators at 42 stations along the North-South East-West Lines (NSEWL) - the first major refurbishment of escalators at stations since the MRT began operations in 1987.

In a press release, the public transport service operator said that commuters can look forward to newer and more energy efficient escalators after the upgrade.

The refurbishment of each escalator, which includes installation of new parts such as traction motors and 'traffic lights' indicating the direction of travel, will take eight to ten weeks to complete.

SMRT added that refurbishment work will be carried out on only one escalator at a time at each station to minimise inconvenience to commuters.

Work has commenced at Ang Mo Kio MRT station, and will start at Tanah Merah MRT station later this month and Tanjong Pagar MRT station in November this year.

According to SMRT, a total of 233 escalators at 42 of the 541 MRT stations along the NSEWL will be refurbished. The upgrade is expected to be completed by end 2021.

minlee@sph.com.sg

SINGAPORE - The Olympic dreams for Singapore's women's table tennis team have been dashed, after the trio - Feng Tianwei, Zhou Yihan and Yu Mengyu - lost the bronze medal to Japan in their final match on Aug 16.

Team Singapore will return home from the Olympics without a table tennis medal for the first time since 2008.

In a video interview published by Channel NewsAsia on its Facebook page, team captain Feng shouldered the blame for her team's defeat.

Looking disappointed, the 29-year-old told a reporter that while her team mates performed well, she felt responsible for the loss of two sets during the match.

And while she admitted that raucous cheers from fans of the Japan team had intimidated her, she said that there were some issues with her own performance that needed to be sorted out.

After the interview was posted by the news channel on Wednesday (Aug 17) morning, many netizens left supportive comments for the team and praised Feng for being honest and taking responsibility.

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

AFP, Reuters, The Straits Times

But it did not take long for critics to also weigh in.

Some were unhappy that the team spoke to the media in Mandarin, while others brought up the long-drawn issue that the team is made up of foreign-born Singapore citizens.

"Nobody cares if you win or not. You're not one of us anyway," one comment read.

"Imported junks," another Facebook user said.

Despite the negative comments, many Facebook users spoke up for the team.

One Facebook user by the name of Collin Tan said: "Whatever it is, these ladies sweat it out for Singapore. So what if they are from China and don't speak English?"

Another by the name of Susan Khoo pointed out that the issue lies in a lack of homegrown talents on the international scene. "I don't think many Singaporeans feel emotionally invested in our table tennis team. Their wins or their losses do not resonate with us. Maybe we need more homegrown talents? Just a suggestion," she said.

The debate over foreign-born athletes in Team Singapore is not a new one, but it seems to have been rekindled after swimmer Joseph Schooling bagged Singapore's first-ever Olympic gold on Aug 13.

In less than a week, the 21-year-old champion has returned home to a hero's welcome, and was given a standing ovation in Parliament. But the media frenzy over Schooling has once again sparked the debate of local versus foreign talent in Singapore sport.

Former national shooter and Raffles Girls' School student Zhang Jingna said on her Facebook page that the negativity was making her "sick".

Now a multi-award-winning fashion photographer based in New York, Zhang was born in Beijing and moved to Singapore at a young age.

Once named Sports Girl of the Year in 2006, Zhang said in a Aug 16 post that she had endured xenophobic insults growing up as a foreign-born child in Singapore.

"I thought the xenophobia I experienced as a child was just a number out of a pool of random experiences. Surely, I would grow up to be in better company than the strangers who told me I was about the same as sh*t, or that I would always be of the lowest classes of citizens compared to local-born Singaporeans. I was wrong.

"The hating on foreign nationals on my feed has reached a point where I am beginning to feel sick. To realise that some of these people are ones that I had once worked with makes it all the more painful," she said.

In a lengthy post, Zhang addresses some of the comments she had come across on Facebook in recent times.

Among these comments are netizens' calls for the Government to spend more money training and cultivating local athletes.

While acknowledging Joseph Schooling's "incredible" success, she points out that "it is of course easy to say all of these after he has already achieved what he has. But it doesn't always start and end like this". Some local-born athletes on scholarships overseas choose to never return, she says.

"If, for example, Joseph was indeed sent to the US on Singapore's dime and a) didn't win, b) never came back, or c) quit. I bet a lot of people would change their tune, and blame the Government for wasting money on a Singaporean who wasn't trained on Singapore soil, by Singaporean coaches," she adds.

Besides, it is difficult to groom young sportsmen in an academic-driven society like Singapore, Zhang points out.

Regarding those "purist" arguments that Singaporeans should not support athletes born in other countries, Zhang writes: "I sure hope your grandparents and theirs don't hear you saying this. It's heartbreaking."

"We all came from somewhere, we all benefited from the immigrants that our parents, grandparents and forefathers were. So let's stay civilised and not use racist and discriminatory words like 'purist'."

She also wonders if the treatment regarding Schooling's success would be different if he was not born in Singapore.

Hundreds give Joseph Schooling triumphant homecoming at Changi Airport

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, AFP, Reuters, The New Paper, Hannah Alkaff, Lianhe Zaobao, AsiaOne

"Before you pass judgement the next time, please remember that people don't get to choose where they were born or what skin colour they were born with. At the end of the day, we are all the same on the inside - flesh and blood and bones, and a heart that's only trying to find our places in the world," she says.

ljessica@sph.com.sg

Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan reiterated yesterday that the hairline cracks found on 26 China- assembled trains were not a safety risk, and withdrawing them from service for rectifications did not affect capacity levels on the North- South and East-West lines.

This was why the defects - brought to light last month by Hong Kong media outfit FactWire - were not publicised, he said in Parliament in response to questions from MPs.

He added that the Japanese-Chinese consortium that supplied the trains, Kawasaki-Sifang, won subsequent tenders fairly and had displayed exemplary behaviour in shipping the trains back to China to have their car bodies replaced - at its own expense.

The warranty period on the car bodies and bolster parts was also reset for five years - one year for defective liability and another four years of extended warranty, he said.

Hairline cracks were found in 2013 - some two years after the trains went into service - on the bolsters, an aluminium alloy structure under the train carriages that are welded to the car bodies.

The cracks developed due to defects in the manufacturing process that resulted in impurities being introduced in the aluminium.

Since July 2014, the trains have been sent to Qingdao progressively to be fixed, and five trains have gone through the rectifications. One train is currently in Qingdao, with the other 20 to be rectified by 2019.

"The concern about the defects had thus been resolved when we called the tender for more trains in 2014 and 2015," he told the House.

"Our train tenders have always been conducted in an open and transparent manner, and are based objectively on quality and price assessments," Mr Khaw said, recapitulating points he made to the media last month.

In 2009, Kawasaki-Sifang was awarded an initial $368 million contract to supply 22 new trains for the North-South and East-West lines, with more trains purchased later.

It continued to win more orders, including a $749 million contract in 2014 to supply 91 four-car trains for the upcoming Thomson-East Coast Line.

In reply to Non-Constituency MP Dennis Tan's question about whether cracks were found on other train models, Mr Khaw said they were also discovered last year on the underframe of train cars used on the Bukit Panjang LRT.

He said that manufacturer Bombardier inspected the defects and found the trains safe to operate.

The cracks on the 19 trains are being welded here, Mr Khaw said. To date, 12 trains have been rectified, with the rest to be fixed by October.

Khaw addresses key issues raised

The cracks found on China-made MRT trains came under scrutiny in Parliament yesterday, with eight MPs questioning Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan on the issue. Here are the key points:

WHY WAS THE ISSUE NOT MADE PUBLIC EARLIER?

Mr Sitoh Yih Pin (Potong Pasir) asked why the Land Transport Authority (LTA) and SMRT did not inform the public about cracks on the bolster - an aluminium alloy structure under the train carriage - after they were discovered in July 2013, or the subsequent decision to ship them back to China for repairs.

Mr Khaw said the LTA did not publicise the hairline cracks for three reasons:

• There was no safety risk to commuters.

• Manufacturer Kawasaki-Sifang took immediate and full responsibility for the defects and said it would pay for all replacement works, including replacing the bolsters with a new set made in Japan and welding them to new car bodies in China.

• The manufacturer accepted LTA's replacement work schedule, which meant that train services and capacity levels are not affected by the incident.

The LTA would have publicised the defects if any of these factors had not been satisfactorily dealt with, said Mr Khaw.

WAS THERE A SAFETY RISK?

Non-Constituency MP Daniel Goh asked if the defects not being "safety-critical" meant they pose zero safety risks for commuters.

Mr Khaw said the trains can take more than three times the maximum stress they may experience during operations, and the cracks have not reduced this safety margin. An independent assessor, TUV Rheinland, confirmed that the trains are entirely safe to operate.

WHAT DID TUV RHEINLAND FIND AND WILL ITS REPORT BE MADE PUBLIC?

Mr Png Eng Huat (Hougang) asked about TUV Rheinland's technical report. Mr Khaw said the consultant found that "an inherent defect" in certain batches of bolsters was the primary cause of the hairline cracks. The report will be published on LTA's website if the firm agrees.

WHY DID KAWASAKI-SIFANG WIN FURTHER CONTRACTS FOR ADDITIONAL TRAINS?

Non-Constituency MP Dennis Tan asked about the consortium clinching subsequent orders for new trains. Mr Khaw said concerns about the defects had been resolved when tenders, which are based on quality and price assessments, were called.

"Kawasaki-Sifang won the subsequent tenders fairly," he said.

WHAT IMPACT HAS THE ISSUE HAD ON THE MRT SYSTEM?

Mr Pritam Singh (Aljunied GRC) and Mr Sitoh asked if the issue has affected operations as well as plans to improve rail reliability and increase capacity.

Mr Khaw said 124 out of 140 trains for the North-South and East-West lines are put on service during peak hours. Only one train is sent back to China at a time, well within the standard 10 per cent buffer of trains for repairs, upgrading and standby. It does not affect the planned capacity expansion on these lines.

The Kawasaki-Sifang train incident has not affected the reliability of the system, as no train delays were caused by the bolsters' hairline cracks, Mr Khaw added.

HOW LONG IS THE WARRANTY PERIOD FOR TRAINS?

Mr Yee Chia Hsing (Chua Chu Kang GRC) asked about the duration of warranty.

Mr Khaw said there is a defects liability of one year, then an extended warranty of four years.

This period is reset after the bolsters and car bodies are replaced, but the reset applies only to those train components.

WHY ARE THE BOLSTERS FROM JAPAN?

Mr Goh asked why the decision was made for bolsters to be supplied from Japan rather than China and if there is a confidence issue with train parts made in China.

Mr Khaw said the manufacturers had decided to use new bolsters from Japan, and his ministry had agreed. He said the first-generation Kawasaki trains are all on Japanese bolsters. "I don't think we need to read anything more than that into this," he said.

There were no cracks in those earlier trains.

This article was first published on Aug 17, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

He was driving his cleaning buggy around the carpark when he saw flames from the corner of his eye.

He turned around and saw the back of his vehicle fully ablaze.

So he did what came instinctively. "I just jumped out," the 54-year-old cleaner, who only wanted to be known as Mr Munusamy, told The New Paper.

The incident happened at about 1.50pm yesterday at the carpark in front of Block 324, Ubi Avenue 1 while he was on his regular sweeping duty.

The fire consumed his automated road sweeper. Thankfully, Mr Munusamy escaped unscathed.

When The New Paper arrived at the scene at about 3pm, only the charred remains of the vehicle were left in the parking lot.

A Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) spokesman said they were alerted to the fire at about 2pm. Two fire engines and bikes were sent to the scene.

The fire was extinguished using a water jet.

When the fire erupted, Mr Munusamy said he ran two blocks away to his wife, who was using a public toilet nearby.

His wife, who only wanted to be known as Madam Devi, 51, told TNP in Tamil: "He ran and told me (what happened). He was frightened."

"When he told me, I started trembling and got so scared," she added.

The couple, both Malaysians, work as cleaners in the Ubi area, shuttling to and from their home in Johor Baru every day.

Mr Munusamy has been employed at cleaning company Clean Solutions for the last four years.

The manager of Clean Solutions, who identified himself only as Mr Phua, said the fire was caused by a short circuit in the vehicle.

The sound of the vehicle bursting into flames was so loud, it jolted a resident from his afternoon nap.

Mr Manivasan Rengan, 62, a service engineer, said he could hear it from his 12th storey flat at Block 324.

"I heard a loud 'boom' sound and ran out to look. It was a very loud noise," he said.

BLAZE

He hurried down to the carpark and saw a huge fire blazing.

He said: "(Mr Munusamy) was so shaken. (But) he kept saying he was okay."

The Ubi resident is friends with both Mr Munusamy and his wife. He has been bumping into them around the block for the last few years and often stops to chat with them.

Mr Manivasan said: "There was a blue car near the blazing (road sweeper) in the carpark.

"When the driver ran down (and saw the fire), he quickly got into his car and drove away."

Another resident of the opposite Block 323, Madam Esa Aman, 66, also heard a loud sound from her ground-floor home.

Madam Esa, a housewife, said: "I went out (of my house) and just stood by the lift to see what happened because I was too scared to go closer."

She had been getting ready to head to the nearby shops, but was so frightened by the sight before her that she hurried back into her house,

She said: "The fire was huge and clouds of black smoke were billowing (from the vehicle)."

This article was first published on August 17, 2016.
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The gas leak at Tanjong Pagar MRT station on Monday afternoon was caused by an oil leak in a train's air-conditioning compressor.

Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan told Parliament yesterday that the train was a first-generation model from Japanese manufacturer Kawasaki, with parts that are more than 20 years old.

The incident, he said, underscores the importance of maintenance - a call he has made previously in response to the regular train breakdowns over the past five years.

Likening older trains to an ageing human body, Mr Khaw said: "If you look after your body well from day one, when you are 40 years old... you probably can still maintain pretty good form.

"But still, a 40-year-old is not the same as a 14-year-old, and likewise, (it is) the same thing with trains."

Mr Khaw said preliminary investigations suggested that the train's air-con compressor had become overheated after the oil leaked.

'Smoke' fills MRT train and station

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

Stomp, The Straits Times

This resulted in freon gas being released from the air-con system to the platform area, which initially sparked fears of a fire.

Mr Khaw was responding to Mr Sitoh Yih Pin (Potong Pasir), who asked for an update on the leak.

Freon gas is a common refrigerant used in air-conditioners. It is non-toxic and not flammable.

Mr Khaw said engineers will examine the compressor to check what had caused the oil, which is sealed within it, to leak. It was last checked about 10 days ago.

Videos posted on social media showed commuters rushing out of what looked like a smoke-filled train.

Operator SMRT later said passengers left the train, and its staff switched on the tunnel ventilation system to disperse the gas. The train was later withdrawn from service.

The gas leak has nothing to do with the cracks that formed underneath the carriages of several newer Kawasaki trains manufactured in China, said Mr Khaw.

The leak is the latest air-con-related incident on the MRT network. Earlier this month, The Straits Times reported two cases of ice shards falling from the air-con vents of China-made trains plying the Circle Line.

Last month, there were also reports of water streaming down from the air-con vents of an East-West Line train.

This article was first published on Aug 17, 2016.
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Madam Chung Khin Chun, described as a "particularly warm, friendly and trusting person", lived modestly. But in the four years after Yang Yin moved into her Gerald Crescent bungalow to his arrest, her cash savings went from $2.7 million to just $10,000.

This was revealed yesterday when Yang, 42, pleaded guilty to misappropriating $1.1 million from the 89-year-old widow.

Since being accused by her niece of exerting an undue influence on the rich elderly woman, the former China tour guide has stuck to one narrative: that she saw him as the "grandson" she never had, and wanted him to move in and take care of her. That was why she wanted to leave her considerable assets to him.

Tussle over widow's $40m assets turns ugly

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, Madam Hedy Mok, Lianhe Wanbao, Madam Chang Phie Chin, Court Documents

Yesterday, the story was exposed as nothing more than a fiction. He came to Singapore simply to benefit himself and his family.

Throughout the saga, Yang claimed that Madam Chung needed his help at home.

But Immigration and Checkpoints Authority records showed that he was frequently away from Singapore. Between September 2009 and September 2014, he left Singapore on 43 occasions and was away for a total of 307 days.

He never took Madam Chung, who was diagnosed with dementia in April 2014, to see a doctor or a psychiatrist.

All household chores, including cleaning and cooking, were done by maids. Yang also ate breakfast alone as he woke at around 10am to 11am, far later than Madam Chung.

"The accused claimed that Madam Chung had accepted him as her 'grandson' on a Beijing trip in 2008, and addressed him as such. This is false," said Deputy Public Prosecutor Sanjiv Vaswani in the statement of facts. "The accused also claimed that it was Madam Chung who had asked him to move to Singapore to live with her as her grandson. This is also false."

It was in 2006 that Yang, then a tour guide, first met Madam Chung. During the visit to Singapore, he told Madam Chung's friend, for whom he had organised a trip, that he was interested in art. She took him to the home of Madam Chung, an avid art collector.

The next meeting was in 2008, when Yang organised a Beijing trip for Madam Chung and her friend. During the trip, he started addressing the women as his grandmothers and urged them to call him "Xiao Yang" ("Little Yang").

From then on, Yang would periodically call Madam Chung, who was at a vulnerable time in her life after her husband died in 2007. He told her he often visited Singapore and she said he could use a spare room in her house to save on hotel charges.

In February 2009, he stayed there for a month. During the time, he persuaded her to give him $40,000 by claiming he needed to buy a car in China to practise driving since he had just got his licence. In truth, he did not have a licence.

He also told her he wanted to quit his job and find one in Singapore. But it has since been proved that the most he did in this regard later was to set up a fake music and dance company.

In July 2009, Yang returned for a month and told Madam Chung he would help manage her finances. Soon, he realised the extent of her savings and investments.

In January 2010, he persuaded her to give him $500,000 to buy her a horse painting by artist Xu Beihong.

Tussle over widow's $40m assets: A look at Madam Chung’s bungalow

Click on thumbnail to view photos. Source: 

The Straits Times, Raymond Tan

Yang now admits he had in fact purchased a $200 fake.

To avoid suspicion, the sum was moved from the widow's bank account to his, then back to her account, before landing in his father's account in China.

He also tried to conceal his misappropriation of $600,000 by lying to the police that he had used the sum to buy five paintings for her.

The five paintings were evaluated by an expert to be worth only $2,000 to $3,000 in total.

During the trial, Yang lied that Madam Chung had given him all of her monies. These included over $300,000 that she entrusted to him to purchase a condominium unit on her behalf; $70,000 she gave for insurance policies in his name but monies from which were meant to benefit her when the policies matured; and a further $600,000 she wanted him to invest.

These sums, including the proceeds from the sale of the condo unit, have been seized by the authorities.

In 2010, he also influenced Madam Chung to change her will - which left most of her money to charity - to one that benefited him. The will has since been revoked by the courts.

Yang is expected to be sentenced on Sept 9.

What he took and the lies he spun

MISAPPROPRIATION OF $500,000

Some time in or around January 2010, Yang Yin persuaded Madam Chung Khin Chun that he had a friend in China by the name of Zhu, who had a valuable painting titled Yin Ma Tu (or Horse Drinking Water) by renowned Chinese painter Xu Bei Hong.

He told her that Zhu was prepared to sell the painting for $500,000.

She issued a cheque to Yang but he realised that if he were to remit such a large sum overseas, red flags might be raised as he was unemployed. So he transferred back the money, and got her to remit the money to his father's account in China.

The horse painting he did buy was a fake. On March 4, 2010, he returned to Singapore and showed the fake painting and a falsified receipt to Madam Chung.

LYING ON THE STAND

Yang later claimed during trial that the $500,000 had been a gift to him from Madam Chung for him to pay off his family debts. He also claimed that around $420,000 was used to pay off medical debts that his grandmother had incurred from a urinary tract condition.

But when queried, he claimed he no longer had the bills and that some of them would have been burned.

MISAPPROPRIATION OF $600,000

Yang was added as a joint account holder of Madam Chung's OCBC investment account in late 2009. In 2011, he told the bank to redeem unit trusts the widow entrusted to him. Proceeds of nearly $1.3 million were added to his account.

On Jan 18, 2012, Yang withdrew $600,000 in cash from the account. He had called his personal banker at OCBC and asked for the sum to be given to him in $10,000 notes.

When asked about the withdrawal, Yang lied that he was intending to register a company with business partners in Hong Kong. He also claimed that he required cash to purchase paintings for the business.

Yang, in fact, had no intention whatsoever to set up a Hong Kong company.

To hide his wrongdoing, Yang procured two fake receipts, which purported to show that he had purchased five paintings for a total of $587,000.

LYING TO POLICE

After his arrest, he identified the five paintings he had "bought" for $600,000. Art expert Lim Sew Yong, however, testified that the five paintings were commonplace artworks and estimated the total value at $2,000 to $3,000.

This article was first published on Aug 17, 2016.
Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

Three years after she was brutally beaten up by a neighbour, Madam Toh Siew Hong, 67, still lives in fear. She is wary when leaving her home and hides whenever the doorbell rings.

She has lost some of her sense of smell and the pain in her back serves as a reminder of the assault.

Haunted by memories of the attack, she cannot fall asleep sometimes, and used to wake up in the middle of the night screaming.

On the morning of Sept 28, 2013, Madam Toh was on her way home after grocery shopping when her neighbour, Casey Sabrina Ng, 43, also known as Asha Verma, stopped her at the lift lobby outside her Chai Chee Road flat.

Madam Toh told The Straits Times that she had not noticed Ng approaching. Ng shouted at her before shoving her.

The elderly woman retaliated, only to be attacked for an agonising 18 minutes. She was dragged across the floor by her hair, stomped on her head repeatedly and had an aluminium incense burner flung at her.

"There were others watching from (Ng's) house when she was beating me up. One of them had a knife in his hand.

"I grabbed on to Ng's leg and told her: 'If I die, all of you are doomed too,'" recalled Madam Toh, tears welling up in her eyes.

She moved out of Chai Chee for some time but moved back after Ng left. But the elderly woman said she still feels worried.

It was not the first time Ng had caused trouble for Madam Toh and her family.

Over about five months before the incident, they went to the police around five times because of Ng, said Madam Toh.

Madam Toh's elder daughter, Ms Maddy Yap, 42, who works in human resource management, said Ng had moved into a unit on the same floor as her mother's in early 2013.

Caught on camera: Woman viciously beaten up by neighbour

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The Straits Times, Lianhe Wanbao

Madam Toh's troubles began when someone called the police in May that year to complain about loud noises from Ng's unit.

"Every now and then, she would come and kick my mother's door, asking her why she called the police," said Ms Yap.

"We kept explaining to her that it was not us."

She said this did not stop Ng from banging on Madam Toh's door, smashing her flowerpots and hurling vulgarities in Hokkien.

Ng would sometimes be drunk and yell at passers-by, and chase Madam Toh when she was going home, Ms Yap said.

Each time her family called the police, Ng was said to have denied her deeds. "(Ng) told us that the police would never nab her," said Madam Toh.

Ms Yap said: "Police would come and knock on (Ng's) door, but each time they left, things got worse. It was endless... We felt helpless."

Eventually, they installed a security camera outside their unit.

The day Madam Toh was attacked, her neighbour called the police, who arrested Ng. Madam Toh was hospitalised for 10 days.

Yesterday, Ng was sentenced to 5½ years of corrective training.

After her discharge from hospital, Madam Toh moved from her Chai Chee home of 16 years to live with other family members for more than a year.

"She brought us up single-handedly," said Ms Yap, the oldest of three siblings.

"Watching your mother get beaten (on video) and being unable to help is torturous. You can never recover from that memory."

Mr Pereira said that Ng (above) was not happy that he and her daughter were not together and that she had been aggressive towards him and his family. (Photo: The Straits Times)

Son-in-law, his family reported her to police

The 43-year-old woman who assaulted her Chai Chee neighbour also has a history of aggression towards her son-in-law and his family.

"(Ng) has been like that from the day I knew my wife... She's a violent person," Casey Sabrina Ng's son-in-law, Mr Lester Pereira, told The Straits Times.

Mr Pereira, 27, and his sister, Lynneth, 23, made police reports against Ng last year after incidents at the Bukit Batok flat where they live with their uncle.

Besides "causing a nuisance", Ng had tried to set fire to the entrance of their unit. She then threatened Ms Pereira with a chopper.

"She was not happy that my wife and I were not together at that point in time," said Mr Pereira, who is going through a divorce with Ng's daughter. Married for six years, the couple have a four-year-old daughter and a son who is turning two. His wife has another daughter, aged six, born out of wedlock.

Mr Pereira, who does contract jobs, first met Ng before marrying her daughter.

Ng had turned up at his uncle's home, where her daughter was then living. Fresh out of jail, Ng had no place to stay and no money for food.

Mr Pereira's aunt took her in and not long after, Ng started drinking and finding trouble with the family for no apparent reason, he alleged.

"I told my wife not to have her around. We couldn't live happily at all," he added. He was also told that Ng would enlist the help of others to beat him up, he said, adding that his mother-in-law did not like him.

New video footage of the assault and updates on Madam Toh's recovery

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Around 2013, his family lost contact with Ng for more than a year when she lived in Chai Chee with an older man she said was her uncle. But one day in 2014, Mr Pereira found her on his doorstep, drunk. When he asked why she was there, she broke down in tears - the older man had been injured. "She got frightened and ran away," he said.

Later that day, he said he found her taking drugs to "cool off".

"She drank and she took drugs in my house," he said, adding that she also hit his children to provoke him.

While Ng did not like many people, he said, she was "okay" with her daughter. Each time Ng got into trouble with the law, her daughter would bail her out. At first, Mr Pereira helped as Ng had promised to change. But once she stepped out of the police station, she returned to her old ways, he said.

"I told my wife, please don't bail her out. If she really has depression, she needs treatment." He said Ng has a certificate saying she has depression. But his wife persisted.

"I don't want anything to do with (Ng)," he said. "If she's outside, she'll hurt more and more people."

This article was first published on August 17, 2016.
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