SINGAPORE — Five men aged between 21 and 38 were arrested for illegally entering Singapore on Thursday (June 24).

The surveillance system of the Police Coast Guard detected five suspicious people who were believed to be swimming towards the shore of Lube Park Jetty in Tuas at about 4.45am.

Following the detection, officers from the coast guard, Jurong Police Division, Gurkha Contingent and Special Operations Command were deployed and successfully arrested the five men for unlawful entry into Singapore, the police said in a news release on Thursday night.

The nationalities of the men were not disclosed and they have been referred to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority for investigations.

Under the Immigration Act, those found guilty of unlawful entry into the country can be jailed a maximum of six months and get at least three strokes of the cane.

Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police Cheang Keng Keong, who is Commander of the Police Coast Guard, said: “The police will continue to take firm action against such offenders to safeguard our waters and sea borders against crime and security threats.”

Just last week, the Ministry of Health said that a man found to have Covid-19 and who was an imported case had entered Singapore waters from Indonesia without valid documentation. He was arrested by the Police Coast Guard and tested for Covid-19 before being taken to the hospital.