37-year-old man arrested for sharing classified information related to Tampines stabbing incident

A 37-year-old man has been arrested for sharing classified information related to a stabbing incident in Tampines. 

The police said in a statement on Monday (Feb 15) that they were alerted that an image of a police Look-Out Message (LOM) sent to various law enforcement agencies, had been posted on social media and circulated online via messaging applications amongst members of the public.

The LOM was issued at about 7.30am to the agencies after the police had established the identity of the suspect who was believed to be involved in an incident where a 42-year-old woman was stabbed at Tampines, reported on the same day at about 6.30am.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the man, who is a public servant from another agency and an authorised recipient of this classified information, had allegedly taken a photograph of the LOM and shared it via WhatsApp with his friend, a 60-year-old man, who was not authorised to receive the classified information.

The LOM was then further disseminated by the 60-year-old man to other unauthorised recipients, resulting in the wider circulation of confidential information.

Police investigations are ongoing.

The offence of wrongful communication of information under Section 5(1)(e)(i) of the Official Secrets Act is punishable under Section 17(2) of the Official Secrets Act, which carries a fine of up to $2,000 and imprisonment of up to two years.

Unauthorised recipients should not further circulate the confidential information received, as they may be similarly liable under the Official Secrets Act.