Latest news with #CPFRequiredRetirementSum
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Multiple charges for man accused of damaging PAP campaign materials on GE2025 Polling Day
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox On July 4, Seng Guan Heng, 57, was also charged with two counts of using criminal force on another person. SINGAPORE – A man who allegedly damaged campaign materials belonging to PAP in Hougang Avenue 5 on Polling Day on May 3 has been charged with one count each of harassment, mischief and causing annoyance while drunk. On July 4, Seng Guan Heng, 57, was also charged with two counts of using criminal force on another person. According to court documents, the Singaporean was at an open space carpark near Block 328 at about 11.20pm on May 3 when he allegedly caused annoyance to another person by shouting while drunk. He also allegedly damaged the poles of two of PAP's flags and five of its posters worth around $200 in total. Minutes later, Seng allegedly used his hands to push two men, both party volunteers, in the chest. He was also said to have made an obscene gesture and hurled vulgarities at a group of PAP volunteers. In court, Seng, who was unrepresented, said that he intends to plead guilty. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Seller's stamp duty rates for private homes raised; holding period increased from 3 years to 4 Asia Japan urges evacuation of small island as 1,000 quakes hit region World Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending Bill wins congressional approval World Trump eyes simple tariff rates over complex talks, says letters will start going out on July 4 Sport A true fans' player – Liverpool supporters in Singapore pay tribute to late Diogo Jota Singapore Jail for man who recruited 2 Japanese women for prostitution at MBS Business More Singapore residents met CPF Required Retirement Sum when they turned 55 in 2024 He added that he plans to travel to Indonesia and Vietnam for work, but did not disclose details about his occupation. District Judge Wong Li Tein told him that he has to make an online application for approval to travel. Seng then told the court that he intends to seek legal advice and his case has been adjourned to Aug 1. The area where the incident allegedly took place falls under Hougang SMC, where lawyer Marshall Lim represented the ruling party against the WP candidate Dennis Tan, who is also a lawyer. Mr Tan secured a second consecutive term in Parliament after winning more than 60 per cent of the vote during the general election. Mr Lim arrived late at Bedok Stadium on the night of May 3, where PAP supporters had gathered to await the election results. He said then that he had been held back by some acts of 'vandalism' at the PAP's branch in Hougang. He stayed behind to make sure that his volunteers were well taken care of. No injuries were reported at the time.
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Jail for man who recruited 2 Japanese women for prostitution at MBS
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Goh Boon Hong, 25, pleaded guilty to five charges on June 30, including harbouring women for the purpose of prostitution and living on prostitution earnings. SINGAPORE - A man who ran an online vice syndicate to recruit Japanese women for prostitution in Singapore was sentenced to a year's jail and fined $4,000. Goh Boon Hong, 25 , pleaded guilty to five charges on June 30 , including harbouring women for the purpose of prostitution and living on prostitution earnings. In August 2024, Goh, who is Malaysian, was hired by a man named Wong Chi San to be a member of the syndicate. Initially, Goh received a 10 per cent commission from the prostitution earnings . This was later increased to 20 per cent. In January 2025, Goh took over the syndicate's operations after Wong was arrested. Details of Wong's case were not mentioned in court documents. That month, a 26-year-old Japanese woman, identified in court documents as A1, accepted Goh's invite to prostitute herself in Singapore from February to March. A1 extended the invitation to her 27-year-old Japanese friend A2, who also accepted. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Seller's stamp duty rates for private homes raised; holding period increased from 3 years to 4 Singapore Multiple charges for man accused of damaging PAP campaign materials on GE2025 Polling Day Asia Japan urges evacuation of small island as 1,000 quakes hit region World Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending Bill wins congressional approval World Trump eyes simple tariff rates over complex talks, says letters will start going out on July 4 Sport A true fans' player – Liverpool supporters in Singapore pay tribute to late Diogo Jota Business More Singapore residents met CPF Required Retirement Sum when they turned 55 in 2024 Over nine days at the Marina Bay Sands hotel , A1 provided sexual services to 44 customers. She earned $14,800 from them, and was paid 1.24 million yen (S$10,900) by Goh. A2 served 37 customers, earning $11,100. Goh paid her 830,000 yen. Goh worked with an accomplice, Chinese national Zhang Kai, who booked the hotel rooms. On top of the hotel room charges, Goh paid Zhang $50 per room per day for procuring the hotel rooms. Zhang would also help Goh to set up inflatable beds and massage gels in the toilets of the hotel rooms. Initially, Goh paid Zhang $500 for each toilet set-up . This was subsequently increased to $600 after Zhang complained of the risk involved in carrying out these prostitution operations. Goh also paid Zhang $2,100 for his services over the nine-day period and kept the rest of the prostitution earnings. The offences came to light on March 7 when the police conducted an anti-vice operation at Marina Bay Sands and Goh was arrested. Zhang's case is still before the courts, with his pre-trial conference date set at July 17. Those convicted of harbouring a woman for the purpose of prostitution can be jailed for up to seven years and fined up to $100,000.
Straits Times
8 hours ago
- General
- Straits Times
Indonesian rescuers widen search for missing after ferry sinks
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Rescue officials said one of the six found dead was a three-year-old boy. GILIMANUK - Hundreds of Indonesian rescuers widened their search for dozens of missing people on July 4 after a ferry sank in rough seas on the way to the resort island of Bali, leaving at least six dead. The ferry carrying at least 65 people, including passengers and crew, was making a 5km crossing from eastern Java island to Bali when it tilted and sank in bad weather late on July 2, witnesses and officials said. As of the morning of July 4, 30 people were still missing after 29 were plucked from the water to safety. Rescue officials said one of the six found dead was a three-year-old boy. Rescuers deployed assets to carry out searches by sea and air on July 4, widening their efforts along the coastlines of eastern Java and Bali, national search and rescue agency operations official Ribut Eko Suyatno told reporters. 'The land search rescue ask to comb through the Ketapang beach from north to south. Also likewise for Gilimanuk,' he said. The ferry passage from Java's Ketapang port to Gilimanuk port on Bali – one of the busiest crossings in the country – takes around one hour and is often used by people travelling between the islands with a car. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Seller's stamp duty rates for private homes raised; holding period increased from 3 years to 4 Asia Japan urges evacuation of small island as 1,000 quakes hit region World Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending Bill wins congressional approval World Trump eyes simple tariff rates over complex talks, says letters will start going out on July 4 Sport A true fans' player – Liverpool supporters in Singapore pay tribute to late Diogo Jota Business More Singapore residents met CPF Required Retirement Sum when they turned 55 in 2024 Singapore Universities like NUS need to be open, to become a sanctuary for global talent: Vivian Balakrishnan Singapore 193ha of land off Changi to be reclaimed for aviation park; area reduced to save seagrass meadow Local rescue officials said the KMP Tunu Pratama Jaya vessel sank 25 minutes into its journey. At least 306 rescuers were deployed on July 4 for the search effort, the Java-based Surabaya search and rescue agency said. The search was temporarily halted overnight and resumed around 8am on July 4 in Bali. Rescuers had deployed inflatable boats, a larger rescue vessel and a helicopter to aid the search on July 3, made up of dozens of personnel, including navy and police officers. Bad weather At least four survivors were found early on July 3 after saving themselves by climbing into the ferry's lifeboat. Initial search efforts were hampered by bad weather, with waves as high as 2.5m and strong winds. The ferry's manifest showed 53 passengers and 12 crew members but it is common in Indonesia for the actual number of passengers on a boat to differ from that document. Marine accidents are a regular occurrence in Indonesia, a Southeast Asian archipelago nation of around 17,000 islands, in part due to lax safety standards and sometimes due to bad weather. In March, a boat carrying 16 people capsized in rough waters off Bali, killing an Australian woman and injuring at least one other person. In 2018, more than 150 people drowned when a ferry sank in one of the world's deepest lakes on Sumatra island. AFP
Straits Times
9 hours ago
- Climate
- Straits Times
Eastern China swelters under early heatwave, threatening crops and industry
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The subtropical high causing the heat has arrived unusually early in 2025. BEIJING - Sweltering heat enveloped China's eastern seaboard on July 4, as a high-pressure system settled over the country's most populous region, baking key agricultural and manufacturing hubs along the Yangtze River and raising fears over potential economic losses. Large swathes of China's economic heartland are set to roast in temperatures of 37-39 degrees Celsius over the coming week. Forecasters are warning that parts of Anhui and Zhejiang provinces, as well as the more central provinces of Hubei and Henan, could top 40 deg C. The subtropical high causing the heat has arrived unusually early in 2025. China's 'Sanfu Season' - an agricultural marker thought to have been in use for over two millennia - typically begins in mid-July and lasts through late August, sending people sheltering from intense summer heat. Extreme heat, which meteorologists link to climate change, has emerged as a major challenge for Chinese policymakers. As well as scorching croplands and eroding farm incomes, higher temperatures can impact manufacturing hubs and disrupt operations in key port cities, and strain already overburdened healthcare systems. Authorities across eastern and central China issued warnings about the dangers, urging workers to take precautions as the combination of extreme heat and humidity during commutes created a heightened risk of heat stroke. In 2022, China was hit by the worst heatwaves since 1961, with many parts of the country enduring a 79-day hot spell from mid-June to late August. No official death tally was disclosed and China does not give a tally of heat-related deaths, although domestic media occasionally report fatalities citing local authorities. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Seller's stamp duty rates for private homes raised; holding period increased from 3 years to 4 Asia Japan urges evacuation of small island as 1,000 quakes hit region World Trump's sweeping tax-cut and spending Bill wins congressional approval World Trump eyes simple tariff rates over complex talks, says letters will start going out on July 4 Sport A true fans' player – Liverpool supporters in Singapore pay tribute to late Diogo Jota Business More Singapore residents met CPF Required Retirement Sum when they turned 55 in 2024 Singapore Universities like NUS need to be open, to become a sanctuary for global talent: Vivian Balakrishnan Singapore 193ha of land off Changi to be reclaimed for aviation park; area reduced to save seagrass meadow In a 2023 report published in the medical journal The Lancet, heat wave-related mortality in the world's second-largest economy was estimated at 50,900 deaths in 2022, doubling from 2021. While the east bakes, the national meteorological centre forecasts more torrential rain across parts of north- and south-west China on July 4 and 5, with videos circulating on Chinese social media showing residents canoeing through flooded streets in the city of Chengdu. REUTERS
Straits Times
20 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Straits Times
Lockdowns and fights: Sean 'Diddy' Combs back in Brooklyn jail ahead of sentencing
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Sean \"Diddy\" Combs, next to his lawyer Teny Geragos, reacts after learning he will not be released on bail, during his sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy trial in New York City, New York, U.S., July 2, 2025, in this courtroom sketch. REUTERS/Jane Rosenberg NEW YORK - Despite being found not guilty on the most serious counts at his sex trafficking trial, Sean "Diddy" Combs will spend months awaiting sentencing at a notoriously understaffed and violent Brooklyn jail where the music mogul has lived through nearly ten months of lockdowns and fights. Combs, 55, has been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center since his September 2024 arrest. The facility, which has also held convicted sex traffickers like British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell and rhythm and blues singer R. Kelly, is a far cry from the luxurious Los Angeles and Miami mansions Combs called home until last year. After the verdict was read on Wednesday, Combs' lawyers asked U.S. District Judge Arun Subramanian to release him on $1 million bond ahead of his sentencing, expected to take place by October. "I understand that you don't, that Mr. Combs does not want to go back to the MDC," the judge said. Combs shook his head. His hopes of returning to one of those homes and the embrace of his family after being cleared of the more serious charges were soon dashed. The judge denied Combs' request for bail, citing evidence of his violent behavior presented during the trial. In recent years, MDC has been plagued by persistent staffing shortages, power outages and maggots in inmates' food. Two weeks after Combs' arrest, prosecutors announced criminal charges against nine MDC inmates for crimes including assault, attempted murder and murder at the facility in the months before Combs arrived. In January of last year, a federal judge in Manhattan declined to order a man charged with drug crimes detained pending trial at the MDC, calling the conditions there an "ongoing tragedy." Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore 193ha of land off Changi to be reclaimed for aviation park; area reduced to save seagrass meadow Business More Singapore residents met CPF Required Retirement Sum when they turned 55 in 2024 Singapore PAP questions Pritam's interview with Malaysian podcast, WP says PAP opposing for the sake of opposing Singapore 1 in 4 appeals to waive HDB wait-out period for private home owners approved since Sept 2022 Sport A true fans' player – Liverpool supporters in Singapore pay tribute to late Diogo Jota Singapore Healthcare facility planned for site of Ang Mo Kio Public Library after it moves to AMK Hub Singapore $500 in Child LifeSG credits, Edusave, Post-Sec Education Account top-ups to be disbursed in July Business 60 S'pore firms to get AI boost from Tata Consultancy as it launches new innovation centre here Last August, another judge said he would convert an older defendant's nine-month jail term to home incarceration if he were sent to MDC, citing the jail's "dangerous, barbaric conditions." The U.S. Bureau of Prisons, which operates MDC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The bureau has said it takes its duty to protect inmates seriously. During the eight-week trial, U.S. Marshals transported Combs to and from the courthouse in Lower Manhattan each day from the facility in Brooklyn's Sunset Park neighborhood, which has also housed former cryptocurrency entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried and Luigi Mangione, accused of killing a health insurance executive. Bankman-Fried has since been moved to a low-security prison in California and is appealing his fraud conviction and 25-year sentence. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to murder charges. A jury found Combs not guilty on Wednesday on sex trafficking and racketeering charges, sparing him a potential life sentence, but convicted him on two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution that could land him in prison for several years. He had pleaded not guilty to all charges. Combs' defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo said in court on Wednesday that Combs had been housed in "a very difficult part of the MDC" where there have been fights. His lawyer Alexandra Shapiro said in a November 2024 court filing that frequent lockdowns at the facility had impaired Combs' ability to prepare for trial. On Wednesday, Combs' lawyers praised MDC staff, who they said had facilitated their access to him during the trial. "Despite the terrible conditions at the MDC, I want to thank the good people who work there," defense lawyer Teny Geragos told reporters after the verdict. REUTERS
