Security officer charged after fake bomb exercise mismanagement in Ang Mo Kio

On Tuesday (9 Apr), a security officer was brought before the court, facing four charges related to his conduct during a security exercise that involved a fake bomb at a location in Ang Mo Kio. The exercise was intended to simulate a bomb threat but led to real police involvement due to the officer's actions.

The officer, identified as 46-year-old Durendran Vicknesh Venkatraman, is alleged to have left his assigned post during the drill to meet with friends and failed to dispose of the fake bomb as required.

Additionally, he is accused of falsifying the guardhouse log to indicate he was present when he was not, leading to the involvement of police when the fake bomb was reported as suspicious.

This incident took place in the early hours of 5 January, during a "red-teaming exercise" at 32 Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2, designed to test security measures against potential threats.

According to the police, it responded to a call where a suspicious item suspected to be an Improvised Explosive Device (“IED”) was found at 32 Ang Mo Kio Industrial Park 2 on 5 January 2024 at 8.22am.

Police officers conducted security checks and the item was later established to be a fake IED and of no security threat.

The oversight resulted in the deployment of police resources and temporary restriction of access to the premises for over 100 individuals due to the ongoing checks.

Venkatraman's case is scheduled for further hearing at the end of April.

If found guilty of causing alarm under the Protection from Harassment Act, he faces a fine of up to S$5,000 (approximately US$3,700).

The charge for being absent from his duty station without a valid reason could result in up to three months in jail, a fine of up to S$2,000, or both.

Providing false information to a public servant may lead to a six-month jail term, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both.

For falsifying records, the penalty could be as severe as ten years in prison, in addition to a fine.