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ICA Officers Make Secret Trip to Geylang
Officers from the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) made a secret two-hour trip to Geylang Road just before sunrise at 7am on 14 April 2005, and accomplished what they needed to do...
2. The raid on three walk-up apartments at Geylang Road resulted in the arrest of 35 immigration offenders (24 males and 11 females). Most of the immigration offenders arrested came from the People's Republic of China (20 males and 11 females), while the rest were from Myanmar. The age of the male immigration offenders ranged from 18 to 52 years old. The female immigration offenders were aged between 28 and 53 years old. Seven of the immigration offenders claimed to be unemployed. Among those who were working, the men largely held jobs as general workers, carpenters and painters, while the women worked as social escorts and freelance masseuses.
3. ICA takes a serious view of attempts by foreigners to overstay or enter Singapore illegally. Under the Immigration Act (Cap 133), the penalties for overstaying or illegal entry are a jail term of up to six months plus a minimum of three strokes of the cane.
Latest immigration offender situation
Illegal Immigrants
4. Our vigilance and stepped-up security checks at the various checkpoints have continued to deter the smuggling of illegal immigrants in and out of Singapore. A total of 550 illegal immigrants were arrested in the first quarter of 2005. This is a fall of 18 per cent compared to the same period last year. The majority of illegal immigrants arrested were from India, Myanmar and the People?s Republic of China. Together, they accounted for 82 per cent of total illegal immigrants arrested.
Overstayers
5. The number of overstayers arrested in the first quarter of 2005 was 1,040. This is a fall of 19 per cent compared to the same period last year. The majority of the overstayers arrested (about 79 per cent) were from the People's Republic of China, India and Thailand.
6. Together with our Home Team partner, the Singapore Police Force, we will continue to flush out immigration offenders to maintain the safety and security of our community. We will also not hesitate to take action against harbourers and employers of immigration offenders.
Everyone Has a Part to Play
7. Immigration offenders pose potential law and order problems in Singapore. Everyone has a role to play in ensuring the security and safety of Singapore. Singaporeans should not employ or harbour immigration offenders. Without a job or shelter, these immigration offenders will not find it attractive to come to Singapore. We would urge members of public with information regarding immigration offenders to call ICA at Tel: 1800-391 6150 or contact the Police.
8. When in doubt about the status of their prospective tenants, homeowners and housing agents can make use of VERIFI (VERIfication of Foreigner Immigration Status) and iCHECK (Identity Card Checking Facility) to verify the immigration passes and NRICs of their prospective tenants respectively. The VERIFI and iCHECK services are available at ICA's website: http://www.ica.gov.sg. Similarly, MOM has a system to allow the checking on the validity of work passes at its website: http://www.mom.gov.sg.
END OF NEWS RELEASE
Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
15 April 2005
2. The raid on three walk-up apartments at Geylang Road resulted in the arrest of 35 immigration offenders (24 males and 11 females). Most of the immigration offenders arrested came from the People's Republic of China (20 males and 11 females), while the rest were from Myanmar. The age of the male immigration offenders ranged from 18 to 52 years old. The female immigration offenders were aged between 28 and 53 years old. Seven of the immigration offenders claimed to be unemployed. Among those who were working, the men largely held jobs as general workers, carpenters and painters, while the women worked as social escorts and freelance masseuses.
3. ICA takes a serious view of attempts by foreigners to overstay or enter Singapore illegally. Under the Immigration Act (Cap 133), the penalties for overstaying or illegal entry are a jail term of up to six months plus a minimum of three strokes of the cane.
Latest immigration offender situation
Illegal Immigrants
4. Our vigilance and stepped-up security checks at the various checkpoints have continued to deter the smuggling of illegal immigrants in and out of Singapore. A total of 550 illegal immigrants were arrested in the first quarter of 2005. This is a fall of 18 per cent compared to the same period last year. The majority of illegal immigrants arrested were from India, Myanmar and the People?s Republic of China. Together, they accounted for 82 per cent of total illegal immigrants arrested.
Overstayers
5. The number of overstayers arrested in the first quarter of 2005 was 1,040. This is a fall of 19 per cent compared to the same period last year. The majority of the overstayers arrested (about 79 per cent) were from the People's Republic of China, India and Thailand.
6. Together with our Home Team partner, the Singapore Police Force, we will continue to flush out immigration offenders to maintain the safety and security of our community. We will also not hesitate to take action against harbourers and employers of immigration offenders.
Everyone Has a Part to Play
7. Immigration offenders pose potential law and order problems in Singapore. Everyone has a role to play in ensuring the security and safety of Singapore. Singaporeans should not employ or harbour immigration offenders. Without a job or shelter, these immigration offenders will not find it attractive to come to Singapore. We would urge members of public with information regarding immigration offenders to call ICA at Tel: 1800-391 6150 or contact the Police.
8. When in doubt about the status of their prospective tenants, homeowners and housing agents can make use of VERIFI (VERIfication of Foreigner Immigration Status) and iCHECK (Identity Card Checking Facility) to verify the immigration passes and NRICs of their prospective tenants respectively. The VERIFI and iCHECK services are available at ICA's website: http://www.ica.gov.sg. Similarly, MOM has a system to allow the checking on the validity of work passes at its website: http://www.mom.gov.sg.
END OF NEWS RELEASE
Immigration & Checkpoints Authority
15 April 2005