Singapore: An Indian-origin Singaporean man has been charged with making a false terrorist threat after allegedly placing a fake bomb at a church in Singapore, leading to the cancellation of all services for the day, according to a report by Channel News Asia.
The incident occurred on Sunday at St Joseph’s Church along Upper Bukit Timah, an area that includes an upmarket residential neighbourhood. A suspicious item was discovered on the church premises, prompting police action.
The accused, Kokulananthan Mohan, 26, was charged on Monday under Regulation 8(2)(a) of the United Nations (Anti-terrorism Measures) Regulations. Charge sheets state that he allegedly placed three cardboard rolls filled with stone pebbles, featuring protruding red wires and bound together with black and yellow adhesive tape, inside the church at around 7.11 am.
Investigators allege that the act was carried out with the intention of inducing a false belief that the item was likely to explode or ignite, thereby causing fear of personal injury or damage to property.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Singapore Police Force said preliminary investigations suggest that the man had staged the incident by placing a self-fabricated item resembling an improvised explosive device within the church premises.
Police said he is believed to have acted alone and that there is currently no evidence to indicate that the incident was religiously motivated or constituted an act of terrorism.
Kokulananthan has been remanded for three weeks for psychiatric evaluation and is scheduled to return to court on January 12, Channel News Asia reported.
During the court proceedings, when informed that the prosecution had sought his remand for medical evaluation, Kokulananthan initially claimed there had been a “miscommunication”, stating that a previous hospital admission was related to alcohol consumption, an issue that was subsequently clarified.
The judge said the psychiatric evaluation had been requested based on the investigating officer’s observations of Kokulananthan’s conduct and behaviour during the arrest and subsequent police operations.
In response, Kokulananthan said the behaviour noted by police was due to a “lack of sleep”, as he works night shifts. The judge said he could raise this explanation with the psychiatrist during the evaluation, the report said.
If convicted, he could face a jail term of up to 10 years, a fine of up to SGD 500,000 (USD 386,757), or both.
With PTI inputs