SINGAPORE, March 18 — For the second time in less than a week, the police have arrested three male teenagers for their suspected involvement in a spitting incident in a shopping mall along Victoria Street, they said in a statement today.
The youths — aged between 16 and 18 — were arrested on Tuesday after the police had received a report on March 14 from a male victim who was hit by spittle when he was on the ground floor of the shopping mall.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the three male teenagers had been spitting over the railing on level five of the shopping mall, which was not identified, on March 12, sometime after 5pm, the police said in its statement.
“The incident had caused alarm and annoyance to the victim, and happened at a time when Singapore is dealing with the Covid-19 situation, and infections can spread indirectly through contaminated surfaces,” said the police.
Through ground inquiries and with the aid of images from closed-circuit television images, officers from the Central Police Division established the identities of the three youths and arrested them yesterday.
“The police take a serious view of such inconsiderate and irresponsible behaviour, especially in the current Covid-19 situation. Everyone needs to play their part by observing good personal hygiene and being socially responsible,” the police statement added.
Investigations are ongoing.
The offence of public nuisance under Section 290 of the Penal Code carries a fine of up to S$2,000 (RM8,741).
If the act is deemed to be able to cause with “reasonable probability”, any common injury, danger or annoyance to the public, or those who dwell or occupy property in the vicinity, the offence will carry a jail term of up to three months, or a fine up to S$2,000, or both.
On March 12, the police arrested three other teenagers in a similar spitting incident. The three teenagers — two males and a female — were arrested after police received reports of an online video of what appeared to be a male teen spitting from an upper floor of a mall on Feb 28.
That incident happened on level four of a shopping centre in the central region, the police had said in its media statement. — TODAY
