Crime in Singapore

Crime rates in Singapore are some of the lowest in the world, with petty crimes such as pickpocketing and street theft rarely occurring, and violent crime being extremely rare.[1] Penalties for drug offences such as trafficking in Singapore are severe, and include the death penalty.[2]

Singapore
Crime rates* (2022)
Physical Crimes
Theft/related crimes140
Crimes against persons86
Commercial crimes58
Housebreaking/related crimes3
Violent/serious property crimes1
Total physical crimes358
Scams & Cybercrimes
Total Scams/cybercrimes597
*Per 100,000 population. Est. total population 5,637,022.

Singapore was ranked first safest country/area (2022) in the Global Law and Order Index[3] that is based on people's experiences and perceptions such as feeling safe while walking alone at night and confidence in the police, third safest city (2021)[4] by the Economist Intelligence Unit that covers digital, health, infrastructure and environmental security,[5] and 24th safest out of 136 countries (2021) [6] in the Global Organised Crime Index[7] by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

Statistics

The total number of physical crimes remain low in 2022.[8] The total number of cases tracked down from 25,633 cases (2018) to 19,498 cases (2020) and increased marginally to 20,193 cases (2022).[9]

Categories 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
Theft & Related Crimes
No of Cases12,19611,1287,4376,8437,878
Per 100,000 population216195131125140
Housebreaking & Related Crimes
No of Cases328281210160163
Per 100,000 population65433
Violent/Serious Crimes1
No of Cases21015330546960
Per 100,000 population43591
Crimes against persons2
No of Cases5,0314,3494,6024,8784,869
Per 100,000 population8976818986
Commercial Crimes3
No of Cases9,41612,71017,12325,871–
Per 100,000 population167223301474583
Miscellaneous Crimes4
No of Cases5,9456,4947,5967,975–
Per 100,000 population105114134146704
Physical Crimes5
No of Cases25,63323,98019,49819,34320,193
Per 100,000 population455420343355358
Scams/cybercrimes
No of Cases6,2349,54515,65123,93331,728
Per 100,000 population111167275439597

Sources: Based on SPF Annual Reports, S'pore National Statistical Office.

Notes: 1Comprises mainly of robberies & extortion cases; 2Refers to crimes where victims suffer bodily harm such as in murders, serious assault/hurt, rape, outrage of modesty & rioting; 3Comprises commercial and financial white collar crimes [2018-2021] includes scams [From 2022] scams relegated to separate category; 4Misc. cases such as affray, mischief, weapon possession, causing hurt & vandalism [2018-2021] includes cybercrimes [From 2022] cybercrimes relegated to separate category; 5Does not include scams/cybercrimes.

2022

On a year-on-year basis, physical crime cases increased (4.4%) from 19,343 cases (2021) to 20,193 cases (2022).[10] Thefts and outrage of modesty were among the cases that showed an uptrend. In outrage of modesty cases, in more than half of the cases (58%) the perpetrator known to the victims. The nightspots and public transports were common venues for these crimes.[9]

Physical Crime Cases 2021 2022
Outrage of Modesty1,4741,610
 % Change—+9.2%
Voyeurism467424
% Change—-9.2%
Shop Theft2,6523,244
% Change—+22.3%
Theft in Dwelling1,3591,729
% Change—+27.2%
Rioting4660
% Change—+30%
Others13,34513,126
% Change——
Total19,34320,193
% Change—+4.4%

For traffic related offences:[11]

Traffic Related Offences 2021 2022
Red Light Running Violations44,74543,687
% Change——
Speeding Violations139,276125,189
% Change——
Red Light Running resulting in Accidents136132
% Change——
Speeding resulting in Accidents9841,124
% Change—+14.2%

Scams

Scams and cybercrime continue to be a key concern in the city state.[12]

Scams may be orchestrated on the pretext of financially lucrative schemes (investments,[13] venture capital[14] and/or marketing[15][16]), recruitment and job offers,[17] identity and relationship,[18] purchase of goods & services[19] and crowdfunding.[20][21] From 2016 to 2022, the number of reported scam cases experienced a six-fold increase from 5,300 to over 30,000 cases.[22] As a crime of concern, the Singapore Police Force has separated scams from its annual crime number statistics.[23]

Scams/cybercrimes 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
No of Cases6,2349,54515,65123,93331,728
% Change—+53.1%+64.0%+52.9%+32.6%
Losses ($Mil)151.4170.8265.7632.0660.7
% Change—+12.8%+55.6%+137.9%+4.5%

In 2022, about half of all crime reports were attributed to scams.[24] On a year-on-year basis, there were 31,728 reported scam cases in 2022, up from 23,933 cases in 2021 (32.6% increase). A total of $660.7 million were lost, up from $632 million in 2021.

The top five reported scams (2021 to 2022) by number of cases were related to phishing,[25] jobs, e-commerce, investment and fake friend call (decreasing order). The phishing scams often involve malware installed on victims' Android devices to steal banking credentials. Since 2023, there has been at least 113 victims with total losses amounting to at least $445,000.[26]

The top five reported scam cases (2021 to 2022) in terms of monetary losses were related to investments, jobs, impersonation of government officials, internet love, e-commerce (decreasing order). In 2022, there were 4,762 e-commerce scam cases with losses totalling $21.3 million.[27]

Cybercrime

Cybercrime is categorised into cyber-dependent crimes where offences are committed under the Computer Misuse Act and cyber-enabled crimes where offences are facilitated by the use of a computer.[28] Cyber-dependent crimes are conducted within the ecosystem of the computer by design. Cyber-enabled crimes are traditional crimes such as data theft, fraud, or harassments that could be conducted in the physical world without a computer. However these acts are greatly facilitated by the use of the computer.[29]

Cybercrimes may be directed at individuals, properties or the government. It may involve people with little technical knowledge such as money mules or talented developers and specialists. Computers and networks are utilised to deliver malware or execute unlawful acts. Criminal acts may be profit-driven such as data theft or vendetta-driven such as damage to national security. Malware can refer to the software coded to facilitate general purpose cyberattacks such as trojans, viruses and worms (usu. targeted by anti-virus software) or software coded to facilitate the targeted stealing or corruption of data. Malware can exploit obsolete browsers, apps as well as operating systems with security flaws such as jailbroken devices.[30]

Category[31] Purpose
Cyber-enabled crimes
Phishing scamsMasquerade as reputable entity or person to gain privileged personal information
Online harassmentUse of threats, embarrassment, or humiliation in an online setting
Online extortionUse of blackmail where digital assets or information are held as hostage
Forgery, piracy, counterfeitingIllegal copying, production of fake goods, reproduction of copyrighted works
Marketing fraudFalse or misleading promotional claims for financial gains[32]
Fake romanceFake profiles to build trust and ask for money[33]
Black market of illegal goodsOnline transaction of counterfeit[34] and stolen products,[35] illegal drugs, stolen identities[36] and weapons
Cyber-dependent crimes
HackingGain access to targeted system/network for malicious intent
SpywareRecord & relay live information
DDoS attackDisrupt network service
RansomwareDisable targeted system/network until ransom is paid
Ad fraudSpam clicking ads, create fake form submission
Viruses, worms, trojansInfect and sabotage system/network
Website defacementVandalise websites, replace content with own messages

Phishing & hacking scams

Phishing is a type of social engineering attack where scammers pose as legitimate entities to steal sensitive personal information such as banking credentials. Phishing sources include FB ads promoting goods/services as well as emails/SMS posing as authorities that direct the victims to access phishing websites or install malware on their devices. The phishing websites are designed to look like the real websites of banks and financial institutions in order to entice the victim to key in sensitive personal information such as login IDs and passwords.[37] A common tactic used in hacking is to induce the victims to install an Android Package Kit ( APK) by sending a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) file over social media. Through the victim's action of accessing phishing websites or installing malware, the scammers gain access to their sensitive personal information to perform fraudulent monetary transactions.[38]

Known risks
Subject Known risks
HardwareCheap sources of phones may come pre-installed with malware[39]
Use of obsolete phone for sensitive transactions[40]
User habitsPoor online hygiene, indiscriminately clicks FB ads, QR codes, whatsapp/SMS links, etc.[41]
Downloads all kinds of commercial apps to phone to "try out"[42]
Non-vigilance against or trust of unknown entities (e.g. advertisers of discounted items), their forwarded instructions and "payment links"[43][44]
Does not use approved payment service on platform, prefers to "deal separately"[45]
Does not regularly run diagnostics on phone[46][47]
Readily downloads and installs scripts, apps and other apk packages[48]
Firmware/SoftwareDownloaded apps of unknown origins (e.g. non-play store or non-mainstream)[49]
Phone not updated with latest security patches[50]
Security settings are disabled (e.g. Android "Install apps from unknown sources" turned on)[51]
Search engine not optimised with security setting (e.g. Chrome browser's "popups & ads" not turned off)[52]
SabotageQR code at business locations doctored with fake QR code leading to phishing website[53][54][55]
Apps are infected by malware during development (e.g. SpinOk malware found in 193 apps with more than 451 million installs)[56]

Countermeasures

To combat the rising incidence of scams, the Singapore authorities had implemented various counter measures to combat scams and reinstating money back to victims.

In 2019, the Anti-Scam Centre was formed under Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) in 2019 and was reorganised into the Anti-Scam Division in 2021.[57] In March 2022, the Anti-Scam Command (ASCom) was formed to include the Anti-Scam Centre and three Anti-Scam Investigation Branches.[57] ASCom also oversees the Scam Strike Teams managed by the seven Police Land Divisions.

Other initiatives and measures include the following:[27]

  1. Amended the Drug Trafficking and Other Serious Crimes (Confiscation of Benefits) Act (CDSA), Computer Misuse Act (CMA) and introduced Online Criminals Harm Act (OCHA) in 2023[58]
  2. Launched and refreshed the anti-scam campaign[59]
  3. Collaborating with law enforcement agencies in Hong Kong, Macau and Malaysia to deal with transnational scams
  4. Launched ScamShield app for iOS and Android phone users[60]
  5. Deploying bank staff to expedite the process of identifying and freezing fraudulent transactions and accounts[57]
  6. Maintaining a SMS Sender ID Registry[61] under the Infocomm Media Development Authority to flag potential scam messages

Notable cases

High-profile scam cases in Singapore include the following:

Subject Period Perpetuators Losses #Victims Description
Nickel Investment Fraud Scheme 2017-2021 Ng Yu Zhi, (conspirators: Keeran Marcus Phang Guan Wei, Alvin Oey Wei Zhong & Ding Kuon Chwo) $1.5 billion 300 Alleged ponzi scheme touted at 15% quarterly gains with fake nickel transactions through the incorporated companies "Envy Global Trading" and "Envy Asset Management". Ng faces 105 criminal charges and is currently awaiting trial.[62][63]
Sunshine Empire Ponzi 2006-2007 James Phang Wah, (conspirators: Jackie Hoo Choon Cheat & Neo Kuon Huay) $190 million 20,000 MLM and ponzi scheme touted at multi-X% returns to market lifestyle packages through the incorporated company "Sunshine Empire".[64][65]
Maxim Trader Compensation Plan 2013-2015 Andrew Lim Ann Hoe, Chin Ming Kam[66] & Goh Seow Mooi >$50 million 2,000 MLM and ponzi scheme touted at 6-8% returns with fund management services in leveraged foreign exchange through the incorporated (New Zealand) company "Maxim Capital".[67]
OneCoin Promotion 2015-2019 Terence Lim Yoong Fook & Fok Fook Seng Unknown 2,349 MLM and ponzi scheme to market educational packages bundled with OneCoin mining tokens through the incorporated company "OneConcept".[68][69]
Tradenation Luxury Goods 2021-2022 Pi Jiapeng & Pansuk Siriwipa $32 million 180 Alleged cheating through the falsified consignment sales of luxury watches and handbags. The couple were arrested while on the run and are currently awaiting trial. The companies "Tradenation" and "Tradeluxury" were incorporated to trade in luxury goods in April 2021 and the former was registered as a precious stones and precious metals dealer in April 2022.[70]
OCBC Bank Phishing 2022 Suspected overseas syndicates, (conspirators: Brayden Cheng Ming Yan,[71] Kong Jia Quan, Jovan Soh Jun Yan, Roy Peh Yong Rong, Muhummad Khairuddin Eskandariah, Lim Kai Ze & Leong Jun Xia) $13.7 million 469,790 Spoofed SMS to collect online banking log-in credentials through phishing websites. Money was laundered to suspected overseas syndicates by conspirators.[72] The bank made reparations on goodwill basis.[73] The MAS imposed additional capital requirements on the bank amounting to $300m.[74]
Car Deposit Scam 2014 Koh Chek Seng, (conspirators: Alvin Loo Mun Yu, Jason Koh Chi Kang) $6.2 million 182 Collected deposits for falsified sales in parallel imported cars through the incorporated company "Volks Auto". To keep up the charade, several luxury cars were put on display in the showroom.[75]
Investment Fraud Scam 2011-2021 Low Mood Chay $1.39 million Unknown Cheated several acquaintances through fake investment schemes that touted high dividends.[76]
Airbnb Rental Scam 2022 Gibson Zeng Xianfu $383,000 62 Collected deposits for fake rental listings with victims from 12 countries.[77]
Renovation Scam 2020 Huang Ruixiang $160,000 40 Misappropriated money for renovation projects after doing partial renovation work through the incorporated company "SG Venture Furnishing". Also duped victims through a fake investment scheme.[78]
Sg Tinder Swindler 2018-2021 Jerald Low Jing Yong >$150,000 10 Fabricated an image of wealth and opulence to cultivate trust from friends and associates, thereby inducing them to give him money.[79]
Carousell Scam 2021-2022 Nicholas Ong Chang Hui $148,000 128 Collected deposits for fake pre-orders of Apple laptops, iPhones and PlayStation consoles as well as the fake sale of a Rolex watch.[80]
Carousell Scam 2019 Caine Poh Zhenglong $108,000 396 Collected proceeds from false sales of various items, most of which were tickets to attractions. Fraudulent Carousell accounts were created by duping jobseekers.[81]

Multi-level marketing schemes

Multi-level marketing (MLM) or pyramid selling are illegal under the jurisdiction[82] unless approved by the Direct Selling Association of Singapore,[83] after having met specific exclusion criteria to protect consumers and participants. A MLM may evolve into a ponzi scheme where the "new income", generated by attracting new or successive participants to provide funds, are marked as "profits" and used to provide "returns" for the older or preceding participants.[84]

Transnational crimes

The key transnational crimes affecting Singapore and the region are driven by scams and cybercrime, illicit drug trafficking and terrorism. Over the years, the police have carried out various operations against transnational crime syndicates. Self-radicalised individuals involved in terrorism are dealt with under the Internal Security Act.[85] There have also been reports of Singaporeans abducted by criminal gangs to work in scam centres in Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Philippines and Thailand with the lure of overseas job postings.[86] The United Nations said that the fast-growing scams centres are generating billions of U.S. dollars in revenue each year and has called upon regional governments to strengthen the rule of law and tackle corruption.[87]

Operations

The Singapore Police has taken action against transnational crime syndicates on its own or in combined operations with the Royal Malaysia Police:

  1. Thirteen transnational scam syndicates with the arrest of more than seventy persons (2022).[85]
  2. Home rental scams that incurred $1.3 million losses from 480 victims (2023).[88] The number of home rental scams was known to have increased from 192 cases (2021) to 979 cases (2022).[89]
  3. A "fake friend call" syndicate that incurred over $1.3 million losses from over 490 victims (2022-2023).[90]
  4. Money laundering cells that incurred over $1.3 million losses from 60 victims (2023).[91]

Psychological tactics

Scammers may be driven by narcissistic and psychopathic anti-social tendencies. They may lack empathy and justify that the victims have only themselves to blame. They may believe that their own interests take precedence over any outcome and that society's rules don't apply to them.[92]

Scammers relies on social engineering techniques to exploit victims and elicit desired behaviours and privileged information via psychologically constructed communications. Their confidence games are often based on persuasion tricks that include false or misleading promises.[93][94]

Scammers want people to feel helpless, detached and isolated from the rest of the society. In Asian societies, victims feel embarrassed due to the loss of face and are reluctant to share what they have encountered with the Authorities. It is important that their inner circles and society refrain from passing a judgement but to be able to approach the subject in an open ended way.[95]

Scammers are known to engage in intimidation or fear tactics against their victims.[96] According to §503 of the penal code,[97] criminal intimidation is committed when someone threatens to cause injury to either the body, reputation or property of a person, or the body or reputation of anyone that the person knows while intending to:

  1. cause alarm
  2. cause the person to do an act that he is not legally required to do
  3. stop that person from doing an act that he is legally entitled to do

Scams have also been known to kill, and have caused victims to take their own lives or engage in self-harm.[98]

Criminal & civil proceedings
Supreme Court Building

Singapore has indoctrinated strong rule of law and their civil and criminal justice systems have consistently performed well over the years. In the World Justice Report 2021 by the World Justice Project, it was ranked 17th out of 139 countries (scoring 8th place in civil justice, 7th place in criminal justice, 4th place in regulatory enforcement and 3rd place in absence of corruption).[99][100]

In resolving scam cases, there are two different types of legal proceedings that might take place, civil and criminal. It is important to understand the distinction between criminal and civil laws. The primary purpose of the criminal law is to punish the people who committed the crimes. The primary purpose of the civil law is to deal with the rights of the individuals or entities. In pursuing civil action, victims may engage their own lawyers or seek legal recourse/advice through the Legal Aid Bureau, grassroots organisations and/or pro bono services. Restitution is a consideration by the courts in sentencing under criminal law.[101] Bankruptcy proceedings may be commenced against the perpetrators of the scam under civil law.[102]

Class Action

In cases where there is a large number of victims affected by the same scam, representation civil suit may be considered. It is advisable to bring the matter to a commercial litigator to determine whether it might be worth to commence representative proceedings.[103]

Commercial crimes

As a leading financial hub that ranks third in the Global Financial Centre Index 2022,[104] Singapore is not immune to financial and corporate crime. Commercial crime includes insider dealing and market abuse, bribery and corruption, money laundering and terrorist financing. Since March 2015, financial crimes are investigated collaboratively by the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to detect, investigate and deal with any misconduct.[105] In May 2023, new offences concerning rash and negligent money laundering were added to the CDSA.[106] Notable commercial crime cases include the following:

  1. The share prices of three companies - Asiansons Capital, Blumont Group and LionGold Corp were manipulated causing their share prices to collapse and two financial institutions were also cheated from August 2012 to October 2013.[107]
  2. There was an alleged conspiracy to bribe (US$55 million) officials of Brazilian company Petrobas by six senior management staff of Keppel O&M from 2001 to 2014 . Keppel O&M agreed to pay more than US$422 million to resolve the charges.[108] The six staff were issued stern warnings for the bribery-related offences.[109]
  3. There were breaches of anti-money laundering and countering financing of terrorism requirements (AML/CFT) by Standard Chartered Bank (S'pore) and Standard Chartered Trust (S'pore) from December 2015 to January 2016. The companies were fined S$5.2 million and S$1.2 million respectively.[110]
  4. There were breaches of anti-money laundering regulations since the 1MDB scandal broke. Eight banks in Singapore were subjected to fines of up to S$29.1 million. The BSI Bank and Falcon Private Bank (S'pore) were closed.[111]
  5. In findings reported by the United Nations (UN), US$254 million worth of arms and raw materials to manufacture weapons were shipped to Myanmar military through Singapore based entities from February 2021 to December 2022. The report said that the Singapore banks have been "used extensively by arms dealers" and that "substantial reserves" of Myanmar are suspected to be held in DBS, UOB and OCBC Banks. In response to the UN report, the Singapore Authorities said that it will not hesitate to take action against any individual or entity that contravenes its laws. According to the UN, about 3,000 civilians have been killed by the Myanmar military since the coup, including more than 200 children.[112]

Money laundering
Money Laundering Cycle

Money laundering is the process used by criminals to camouflage money that originates from an illegitimate source so that it appears to come from a legitimate source. Money laundering typically involves the stages of placement, layering and integration. Placement is the stage of injecting "dirty money" into the legitimate financial system. For phishing or hacking cybercrimes, the credentials of money mules (e.g. Singpass accounts and bank accounts) are often used by criminals as a stepping stone to transact the stolen funds from the victims' accounts onwards to other accounts.[113] Layering is the stage used to conceal the source of the money through a series of transactions and book-keeping tricks to obfuscate the digital trail and hide the origin of the funds. It may involve transacting through cryptocurrency on-chain laundering mixers.[114] Integration is the stage where the criminals are able to withdraw the laundered money for their own use. The funds could be converted into investible assets such as properties and luxury goods.[115]

In August 2023, the police arrested ten foreign nationals on suspicion of committing offences such as forgery and money laundering after about S$1 billion of cash and assets were seized in raids across the country. The assets seized included two gold bars, more than S$23 million of cash, more than 250 luxury handbags and watches and more than 270 jewelry items. More than 35 bank accounts were frozen for investigations. In addition, 94 properties and 50 vehicles were targeted with prohibition of disposal orders.[116]

The global shift in attitudes toward drugs has also led to the liberalisation of drug policies in some countries, as evident in the decriminalisation and/or legalisation of cannabis in Thailand and some states in the United States. Due to its proximity to major producing countries (e.g. Golden Triangle) in the illegal drug trade (worth about 1% of total global trade), Singapore is also vulnerable to the inflow of drugs.[117]

2022

The number of drug abusers arrested increased 4% from 2,729 cases (2021) to 2,826 cases (2022). The Central Narcotics Bureau highlighted trends of increased cannabis seizures and a growing number of new cannabis users below the age of 30 years, with some as young as 14. Some of the users were involved in drug trafficking. Methamphetamine, heroin, cannabis and ecstasy were among the three most commonly abused drugs in Singapore. The estimated market value of drugs seized is $16.66 million. In the Misuse of Drug Act (MDA), 13 new psychoactive substances were added to the Class A controlled drugs schedule.[117] There were a total of 11 judiciary hangings all for drug related offences.[118]

Arrests* 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
No of drug abusers3,4393,5263,0562,7292,826

source: *CNB annual reports, https://www.cnb.gov.sg

Human trafficking

Singapore is a transit and destination country for human trafficking.[119][120] Individuals trafficked from other South and South-east Asian countries are often rendered vulnerable to sex or labour exploitation through various means. Regarding human smuggling, Singapore has seen a decrease in cases as authorities have become better at detecting concealed individuals at land and sea checkpoints.[121][122] However, at the same time, criminal organisations have developed more sophisticated methods of human smuggling, including the procurement of genuine and fraudulent travel documents.[123]

Some of the 849,700[124] foreign work permit holders who comprise almost one-quarter of Singapore's labour force are at risk of trafficking. Most victims migrate willingly for work in construction, domestic service, performing arts, manufacturing, the service industry, or commercial sex but may later face exploitation in these sectors. To migrate, many workers assume large debts[125] to recruitment agents in their home countries and sometimes in Singapore, placing them at risk for debt bondage. Foreign workers from countries with a small presence in Singapore can experience language barriers that increase their isolation.[122]

Traffickers compel foreign workers into sex trafficking or forced labour through threats of forced repatriation without pay, restrictions on movement, physical and sexual abuse, and withholding wages and travel documents, such as passports. Some recruitment agencies illegally engage in contract switching and charge workers fees more than the legal limit. Foreign workers have credible fears of losing their work visas and being deported,[126] since employers have the ability to repatriate workers legally at any time during their contracts with minimal notice. Unscrupulous employers exploit the limited transferability of low-skilled work visas to control or manipulate workers.[122]

Reports indicate that some fishing vessel captains of long-haul boats that transit or dock at Singaporean ports use physical abuse to force men to perform labour.[127] A small number of Singapore residents facilitate and engage in child sex tourism abroad.[122][128]

Child abuse

Child protection investigations are carried out by the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s Child Protective Service.

Investigated Cases 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Physical Abuse171148161263444373584660677788
Sexual Abuse70605682107181248210261443
Neglect136135164206322340331218375910
Total3833433815518738941,1631,0881,3132,141

In 2021, there were over 2,000 cases of child abuse investigated in Singapore. The increase in the number of cases from 2015 onwards was attributed to the introduction of more rigorous screening tools and training to spot such cases of abuse for professionals working with children, such as educators, social workers, counsellors, and health professionals.[129]

In 2014, the government explained during a parliamentary sitting that between 2009 and 2013, there were more than 18,000 persons arrested out of which 20% were foreigners. The arrest rates for foreigners were 272 per 10,000 persons while the arrest rate for residents were 385 per 10,000 persons.[130]

In a 2019 report Public Attitudes Towards Migrant Workers in Japan, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the United Nations Women, a majority (52%) of survey respondents in Singapore felt that crime rates have increased due to immigration although there is little direct evidence to back up the claims. The findings suggested that programmes and policies be put in place to encourage interaction and community engagement of foreign workers and discourage exclusion, isolation and discrimination practices.[131]

According to the Ministry of Manpower (MOM), an average of 270 reports of abuse involving migrant domestic workers (MDWs) were made to the police each year between 2017 and 2020.[132]

Traffic offences

Serious traffic offences involving death, injury or damage to public property fall under the jurisdiction of criminal law in Singapore.[133] In 1985, the legal alcohol limit has been revised from 0.11% to 0.08% BAC. The number of accidents and arrests related to drink driving are given in the table below.[134] In other developments, cyclists who break road rules such as non-conformance to group size, failing to stop at red lights, riding abreast of another cyclist on single lane roads and cycling on expressways are subject to higher compositions fines or imprisonment, effective from January 2022.[135]

Drink Driving 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022
No of Fatal Accidents11713810
No of Accidents178162146155175
No of Arrests1,6851,4531,5171,9872,038

Failure to Report a Crime

Under §424 and §202 of the Criminal Procedure Code, it is a legal duty binding upon any person who has knowledge or reason to believe or suspect that a crime has been committed, to submit a police report (or witness report where applicable). The failure to act in accordance with the aforementioned will render the person to be liable to the charge of perverting or obstructing justice.[136]

Crime deterrence
Main article: Singapore Police Force

The National Crime Prevention Council of Singapore maintains a web portal Scam Alert that offers scam prevention campaign posters[137] and also encourages victims to come forward to share their stories.[138]

The Neighbourhood Watch Zone scheme was formed on 27 April 1997[139] and today includes the Citizens On Patrol (COP) initiative, which conducts regular foot patrol with community policing.[140] Officers go around each neighbourhood to project police presence and to disseminate crime prevention pamphlet to the residents.

The Ministries of Law and Home Affairs said that the death penalty is an effective deterrent when it comes to the most serious crimes, including the trafficking of significant quantities of drugs as well as crimes such as murder.[141]

Number of judiciary hangings

Type2007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022
Drugs223020023281120011
Murder1410200012022000
Firearms0010000000000000
Total365040024481340011

See also

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