Returning Singaporean on stay-home notice charged with leaving facility for 9 days
A person convicted of an offence under the Infectious Diseases Act and its Regulations is liable to a fine of up to $10,000, or up to six months’ imprisonment, or both.
SINGAPORE — A 35-year-old Singaporean woman was charged on Wednesday morning (June 10) for breaching her 14-day stay-home notice (SHN), given to those returning from abroad to prevent the spread of Covid-19 from imported cases.
In a statement, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said that Rameswari Devi Jairaj Singh had arrived in Singapore from Johor Baru, Malaysia, on April 30 this year, and was served the notice until May 14.
After passing through immigration, she was taken to a hotel in Novena, which is a dedicated facility for people serving out the order.
Stay-home notices are issued to all Singaporeans, permanent residents and long-term pass holders returning to Singapore from any country. It requires them to stay in their homes or a designated facility at all times for 14 days.
Rameswari, however, allegedly left the hotel on May 4 and returned only on May 12. During that period, she visited the following locations:
Toa Payoh
Redhill
Block 63A Lengkok Bahru
Siglap
Tiong Bahru
“ICA will not hesitate to take firm enforcement action against those who fail to comply with stay-home notice requirements,” the authority said.
A person convicted of an offence under the Infectious Diseases Act and its regulations is liable to a fine of up to $10,000, or up to six months’ jail, or both.
Rameswari will return to court on July 1 and remains out on bail of S$5,000.
ICA also reminded all travellers arriving in Singapore to ensure that they submit “complete and accurate health and travel declarations via the SG Arrival Card”.
“Anyone who makes a false or misleading declaration will be liable to prosecution under the Infectious Diseases Act.”
The penalty for providing false or misleading information is a fine of up to S$10,000, a jail term of up to six months, or both.
For subsequent offences, the penalty is a fine of up to S$20,000, a jail term of up to 12 months, or both.
For foreigners, ICA may also take further administrative actions, such as revoking or shortening the validity of permits and passes to remain in Singapore, it said.
