4 British Nationals Fined & Permanently Banned From Working In Singapore After Lazarus Island Gathering
We should all know by now that Singapore takes any flouting of Covid-19 safety rules very seriously.
Other than meting out hefty fines, authorities have also revoked work passes and permanent residence (PR) status of non-citizens here.
For 4 British nationals who were part of a 12-person gathering on Lazarus Island in Aug 2020, they each received a $3,000 fine in court on Wednesday (24 Feb).
Lazarus Island
Source
They are also banned from working in Singapore for the rest of their lives.
Fined & banned from working in Singapore after Lazarus Island gathering
According to Channel NewsAsia (CNA), 4 British nationals were the last of their group who were brought to court for flouting Covid-19 regulations:
- Joshua Adam Roth, 31
- Helen Ann Sullivan, 31
- James Riby Oram, 31
- Edward John Joseph Lee-Bull, 33
They had admitted to taking part in a social gathering for non-permitted purposes.
As a result, they were each fined $3,000 and had their work passes revoked. They will not be able to return to work in Singapore forever, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM).
Photo of gathering was uploaded to Instagram in Aug 8
On 8 Aug 2020, the 4 had gathered with 8 others during Singapore’s Phase 2 of reopening.
At that time, residents could only have gatherings of up to 5.
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They visited St John’s Island at around 11am, and walked to Lazarus Island for recreational activities.
Shortly after returning to mainland Singapore at about 6pm, one of them decided to upload an Instagram photo of their gathering.
This proved to be their undoing as the photo was later shared on other social media sites as well.
6 were also permanently banned by MOM last year
As for the rest of the group, The Straits Times reports that 6 of them were also banned from working in Singapore forever in 2020.
They comprised 5 Work Pass holders and 1 Dependant’s Pass holder named:
- William Edwin Dunford, 32
- Jeff Richard Alexander, 32
- Paul Jonathan Gold, 32
- Richard Henri Lagesse, 31
- Lowri Mair Jeffs, 31
- Zoe Louise Cronk, 30
Their ex-employers had already cancelled their documents before the ban was implemented.
The remaining 2 are 29-year-old Singaporean Natalie Joanna Sarkies, and 31-year-old Vietnamese Luong Thi Thu Ha.
Important to abide by the law
Pandemic outbreak or not, this case shows how important it is for one to follow the law, especially when they’re living in another country.
We hope people will take Covid-19 and safety rules more seriously, and understand the consequences of their actions.
It is unsafe for us to gather in large groups for now, so let’s all be law-abiding people and follow the rules. They’re there for a reason.
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