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SINGAPORE – A 44-year-old pilot with Federal Express (FedEx) violated his Notice of Home (SHN) to buy masks and a thermometer at a shopping center in Chinatown, according to a court.
In state courts on Wednesday (May 13), American Brian Dugan Yeargan was jailed for four weeks after he pleaded guilty to his sole charge under the 2020 Infectious Diseases Regulation (Covid-19 – Suspension Orders).
Before arriving in Singapore on April 2, Yeargan submitted an online health declaration form to the Immigration and Control Authority (ICA). He stated that he had been to China, Hong Kong, Macao, Japan, and the United States in the past 14 days. Yeargan acknowledged that he would be given a 14-day SHN to be seen at Crowne Plaza Changi Airport and that a PDF copy of his SHN would be emailed to him.
Just after 3 am on April 3, Yeargan and two other commercial pilots were escorted by a staff from Singapore Airport Terminal Services (SATS) to an immigration counter. An immigration officer informed Yeargan of his SHN requirements and ordered that he not leave his hotel room from April 3 to April 17.
SATS staff then escorted the three pilots to the hotel. The staff also reminded them of the SHN requirements and told them not to leave their hotel rooms at any time during the period.
But just two days later, Yeargan left his room at around 11:15 a.m. He walked to the Changi Airport MRT Station and took a train to the City Hall MRT Station before walking to Chinatown Point. There, he visited four stores, bought a thermometer from one and a few boxes of masks from the other three.
Coincidentally, an ICA officer conducting an inspection at Yeargan’s hotel found him missing from his room. Yeargan was on his way to an MRT station to catch a train back to the hotel around 1:40 p.m. when he received a phone call from his FedEx office notifying him not to leave his hotel room and to return immediately . . The culprit took a taxi and returned at approximately 2.15 p.m.
Asking for a deterrence sentence, Deputy Attorney General V Jesudevan said: “Unfortunately, the defendant’s case is not isolated. As of May 10, 2020, more than 148 investigations into SO violations have been initiated (suspension orders) or SHN.
“Unless there is an immediate change in the attitude and behavior of certain members of the public about the severity of law enforcement, the number of infractions, and potentially the number of COVID-19 cases in Singapore, will increase.” said the prosecutor. .
DPP Jesudevan added: “The court needs to send a clear message to the public that SO or SHN violations will not be tolerated and that severe penalties will be imposed. Such a message is urgently necessary to deter irresponsible people who are prepared to put the health of the public at risk for their personal interests. “
In mitigation, Yeargan’s attorney, Ronnie Tan, said his client was motivated to obtain personal protective equipment for his wife in the United States, where those products were in short supply.
For violating COVID-19 regulations, Yeargan could have been fined up to $ 10,000 and jailed for up to six months.
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