Police nab 7 women at 7 Orchard Towers shops in anti-vice raids
Seven women were arrested for offences under the Women’s Charter Act in July 2022, the police said.
SINGAPORE — The police have arrested seven women suspected to be involved in vice-related activities at Orchard Towers. These came after "a series of operations" earlier this month by the Tanglin Police Division to clamp down on such crime.
The raids — carried out over nearly two weeks between July 7 and 19 — also saw a 52-year-old man charged last Wednesday for his alleged involvement in operating an unlicensed massage establishment at the commercial building located along Orchard Road.
TODAY understands that the women arrested were not from the man’s massage establishment.
In a news release on Wednesday (July 27), the police said that the seven women — aged between 27 and 52 — were believed to have operated from “individual shopping mall outlets” at Orchard Towers.
They were arrested for offences under the Women’s Charter Act, the police added.
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The women were arrested from seven different outlets, TODAY understands.Investigations are ongoing.
The police stressed that the operations at Orchard Towers are part of the authorities’ ongoing efforts to clamp down on vice-related activities in the shopping district.
They advised landlords to ensure that tenants do not carry out illicit activities on their premises.
Senior Assistant Commissioner (SAC) Cheong Chee Ming, commander of Tanglin Police Division, warned that the police will continue to take “tough enforcement action against those involved in criminal activities”.
“Those found engaging in illicit activities will be dealt with sternly in accordance with the law,” SAC Cheong said.
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Under the Women’s Charter, a first-time offender who keeps, manages or assists in the management of a brothel can be jailed up to three years or fined up to S$3,000, or both.“In addition, any person who knowingly lives wholly or in part on the earnings of the prostitution of another person can be jailed up to five years and fined up to S$10,000,” the police said.
Action will be taken against operators who flout the rules and regulations under the Massage Establishments Act 2017.
If convicted, first-time offers may be jailed for up to two years or fined up to S$10,000, or both. Repeat offenders face harsher penalties, the police warned.
