Ten Indian nationals were charged yesterday with gathering unlawfully in a Kim Keat Road shophouse on May 5, during the circuit breaker period. They are accused of flouting social distancing rules under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) Act.
Two of them, Navdeep Singh, 20, and Sajandeep Singh, 21, face three charges each. The rest, facing one charge each, are: Arpit Kumar and Vijay Kumar, both 20; Sharma Lukesh, 21; Bhullar Jasteena, 23; Mohammed Imran Pasha, 26; Avinash Kaur, 27; Karmjit Singh, 30; and Waseem Akram, 33.
According to court documents, Navdeep Singh, Sajandeep Singh and Kaur are tenants at the shophouse. Kaur allegedly allowed Bhullar to enter her home around 11.30 am that day to study.
Her two housemates are accused of allowing the other six into the shophouse "to talk and have tea" earlier in the morning.
Bhullar told District Judge Lorraine Ho yesterday: "I went to my friend's house to study... I had to prepare for an exam."
Her pre-trial conference will be held on June 5. The nine others intend to plead guilty.
The Indian nationals were among 15 people taken to court yesterday over offences related to the Covid-19 outbreak.
The other five are Singaporeans: T. Sathish, 28; Renukha Arumugam, 30; George Heng Seng Huat, 54; Mohd Yusoff Shaik Alladin, 55; and Liw Ah Piw, 65.
Sathish left his Loyang Rise home on April 24 to go to his parents' flat in Serangoon North Avenue 2, according to court documents.
After that, he is said to have walked around "aimlessly" and drank alcohol in public places before falling asleep at a bus stop in front of Block 106, Lorong 1 Toa Payoh.
Court documents say he was spotted not wearing a mask over his nose and mouth at the bus stop at 8.44am the next day. He is accused of spewing vulgarities at a policeman who approached him.
Sathish is also accused of failing to report his change of home address to a registration officer within 28 days after he moved. He moved from his parents' flat to Loyang Rise in May last year, court documents show.
On April 12, Renukha allegedly left her Jurong West flat to meet her boyfriend at a bench near Block 713, Clementi West Street 2, around 3am.
She is said to have met him again in Clementi around 12.30pm on April 17 and is accused of failing to wear a mask over her nose and mouth about an hour later.
Renukha allegedly left her home again around 11am on April 29 to meet another person.
She will be pleading guilty on June 10.
Liw, who lives in a York Hill flat near Outram Park, allegedly left his home on four occasions, between April 22 and May 2, to consume beer, police said in a statement on Thursday.
Yusoff, who faces one count of harassment, is accused of using "insulting words" on an environmental officer from the Singapore Food Agency.
He was at a food stall at Block 138, Tampines Street 11, around noon on April 15 when he allegedly told the woman: "Not lowly people like you. Masagos and Teo Chee Hean also talk nicely to me. You lowly people only yaya papaya. I'm going get you all into trouble."
Heng had earlier been ordered to be isolated at a Marine Drive flat from Feb 10 to 24. On Feb 24, he allegedly left the flat on two occasions without the permission of the Director of Medical Services.
He will be back in court on June 3. The cases involving Sathish, Liw and Yusoff have been adjourned to June 12.
