Arrest for Bangladeshi man who offered ICA officers S$200 to let him into Singapore

SINGAPORE: After being denied entry into Singapore at Changi Airport, a Bangladeshi man offered an Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) officer S$200 ($152) to let him through.

When another ICA officer was called to assess the situation, the man also offered him S$200.

For his actions, Rakibul, 30, was sentenced to one month in prison on Friday (October 18), the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) said in a press release.

WHAT HAPPENED

On October 2, Rakibul arrived in Singapore on a flight from Bangladesh.

When he arrived at the automated lanes at Changi Airport Terminal 2, he was blocked from entering the country by the ICA system, the CPIB said.

Rakibul was escorted to the ICA duty officers’ room for further checks. He was then taken to a waiting room by ICA Checkpoint Inspector Muhammad Firdaus Ahmad.

Along the way, Rakibul handed INSP Firdaus a piece of paper with the message: “I give you 200 Singapore dollars inside your passport. Let me visit Singapore, please.”

INSP Firdaus then called Assistant Superintendent Wong Wei Quan to the waiting room to assess the situation.

“When ASP Wong attempted to clarify Rakibul’s intention in producing the newspaper, Rakibul offered S$200 in cash to (him) as an inducement to enter Singapore,” the CPIB said.

The two ACI officers did not accept the bribe and reported the case to the CPIB. Rakibul was charged in court with corruption the following day.

“Singapore adopts a strict zero-tolerance approach to corruption,” warned the CPIB.

Anyone convicted of corruption under Section 6 of the Prevention of Corruption Act can be fined up to S$100,000, imprisoned for up to five years, or both.