Teen in SLE bike chase that killed LTA officer gets fresh charge of selling Singpass details, asks for bail

SINGAPORE: An 18-year-old who was in a motorcycle chase along Seletar Expressway (SLE) that killed a Land Transport Authority (LTA) officer has received a fresh charge for selling his Singpass details.

The latest charge, tendered on Thursday (Jul 18), means the teen now faces seven charges in total.

The fresh charge states that he sold his user ID and password to his Singpass account to an “unknown person” on Telegram for the promise of loans of S$300 (US$224) in mid-2023.

The teenager cannot be named as he was under 18 at the time of one of his offences: Consuming methamphetamine in August 2023.

His charges described traffic, drug and weapon offences, five of which occurred on Jun 4.

On that day, he allegedly had a Samurai sword at a Woodlands block and rode a motorcycle along the SLE without a licence or insurance.

When LTA officer Mr Zdulfika Ahakasah ordered him to stop, the teenager allegedly failed to do so. Instead, he cut across two lanes on the road shoulder near the Tampines Expressway exit and across the chevron marking of the expressway divider to evade the officer, charge sheets allege.

In the chase, Mr Zdulfika got into an accident with two lorries and a van and he was taken to hospital, where he died.

When the teenager was first charged over this incident in June, he said: “I gambled my life as much as he gambled his. So the death … I may be one of the contributing factors to the death, but I am not to be blamed.”

He remained unrepresented on Tuesday and appeared in court from his place of remand in a white shirt, with a shaven head.

The prosecutor said the case was pending and asked for four weeks’ adjournment, stating that they had asked for no bail in the earlier hearing as the teen had been arrested via police gazette.

The teen had failed to report to the Central Narcotics Bureau while on station bail.

Asked if he understood, the teenager said: “Uh, yeah, but I would like to ask for bail review as my mother is now alone, so … “

The judge adjourned the case to August and fixed a bail review for him on Jul 22.