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Faced with credit card debt of more than $11k, man made false bomb threat to DBS Bank
Ang Cheng Shin threatened DBS Bank's customer service operators that he would plant a bomb at its headquarters in Marina Bay. ST PHOTO: KELVIN CHNG
Samuel Devaraj
Nov 28, 2024
SINGAPORE - Saddled with a credit card debt that ballooned after more than a decade of unpaid interest, a delivery rider made false bomb threats to DBS Bank.
Ang Cheng Shin threatened its customer service operators that he would plant a bomb at its headquarters in Marina Bay, forcing 67 police officers, DBS personnel and landlord security personnel to spring into action.
The 34-year-old Singaporean was sentenced to 15 months’ jail on Nov 28 after he pleaded guilty to one charge for giving false information about the presence of a thing that is likely to cause damage to property.
Another charge of harassment was taken into consideration during sentencing.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Hidayat Amir said Ang signed up for a credit card with the bank on Dec 2, 2010, and in 2011, he owed $647.52 on the card.
Despite repaying some of it between 2011 and 2017, he could not settle it completely, and accumulated interest meant his debt grew to $11,478.63 as at Dec 31, 2023.
He agreed to a repayment plan where he would have to pay a total of $3,840 across various monthly repayments and for the remaining debt to be written off.
However, he did not make any repayment between January and May 2024.
As a result, DBS instituted a system in line with its institutional policy, where Ang would be called via an automated system once or twice every few days.
If he were to pick up, the call would be redirected to a customer service officer. While Ang initially did not answer the calls, he did so on nine occasions on May 27.
It was when speaking to various customer service operators that he made the threat.
Alarmed, some of the operators brought the matter to the attention of senior management, and the police was notified.
Four police officers went to Marina Bay Financial Centre and together with 12 DBS personnel and 20 landlord security personnel conducted bomb sweeps of the building, including the perimeter of its carparks and disposal centres.
In DBS Asia in Changi Business Park where the customer service operators were stationed, 10 bank personnel and six landlord security officers conducted a bomb sweep.
Police officers also traced Ang’s phone number and tracked his whereabouts.
Nine officers were dispatched to the vicinity of Paya Lebar and Ubi where Ang was doing deliveries, and two were sent to his home in Yishun.
Ang was found to be at Singpost Centre at Paya Lebar and arrested at about 5.30pm.
Calling for a sentence of between 15 and 18 months’ jail, DPP Hidayat said bomb hoaxes are particularly pernicious as it is impossible to immediately ascertain the veracity of the threats, and they cause a considerable drain on essential and emergency services.
He added: “Law enforcement officers must balance between the need to conduct the verification and the importance of not creating undue panic.
“Catastrophic consequences may follow from the slightest miscalculation.”
