A former Certis CISCO auxiliary police officer leaked the deployment plan of authorities in catching errant personal mobility device (PMD) riders.
The ex-police officer, Syarifah Nur Nabilah Syed Omar, 24, who took a screenshot of the deployment plan and forwarded it to Afendi Mohamed Rashid, 36, whom she met while doing food deliveries, then forwarded the details in a WhatsApp chat group was sentenced to one-week imprisonment on Thursday (June 30).
Syarifah was a Land Transport Authority (LTA) active mobility enforcement officer during her time with Certis CISCO. She would patrol pedestrian walkways and detect errant PMD riders such as those using modified devices, going over the speed limit or compromising road safety.
As such, LTA staff would devise a daily deployment plan that lists the specific officers and the areas they would patrol for the day.
Details of the deployment plan are changed daily, and they are kept from the public.
Syarifah resigned from her job on May 20, 2021, but remained in the WhatsApp group, where team leaders would send out the deployment plans.
It was reported that she continued receiving confidential information from May 21 to June 1, 2021.
Even though she knew she wasn’t supposed to be receiving the information or circulating it to unauthorized individuals, Syarifah still decided to forward the deployment plan.
Afendi then sent the information to a public group chat with about 211 members. “Don’t I say I never protect ah. Today GM deployment,” he wrote in the message.
“GM” stands for “green men” and is the colloquial term for active mobility enforcement officers because of their vest colour.
The deployment plan was later forwarded by other members to at least three other WhatsApp groups for PMD riders.
The duo would pass each other details on enforcement efforts so that they knew where to avoid the officers on patrol, reported Channel News Asia.
Their actions came to light after an officer came across the deployment plan on an e-scooter WhatsApp group. He then informed his team leader, who was Syarifah’s former team leader, and a police report was made.
Syarifah and Afendi, afraid of being tracked by the police, deleted their message trails and the WhatsApp group chat.
On June 2, 2021, an investigating officer called Afendi, but he refused to go to the police station. He blocked the officer’s contact number and hung up on another officer who tried reaching out. He was arrested in December last year.
They both pleaded guilty to one charge of communicating information obtained in contravention of the Official Secrets Act.
The penalty for this offence is imprisonment of up to two years and a fine of up to S$2,000.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Seah Ee Wei requested one to two weeks’ jail for each person, noting Syarifah was a former enforcement officer, while Afendi forwarded the information to 211 people. They also tried avoiding the police afterwards.
Meanwhile, Syarifah’s defence counsel Azri Imran Tan said that she only sent a screenshot to one person “merely to help him.”
Afendi didn’t have a lawyer and asked for leniency as he was the sole breadwinner of his family. He also needed to care for his wife suffering from anxiety.
Syarifah was a former officer, which “makes this worse,” said Deputy Principal District Judge Luke Tan. He noted he would not make a distinction in their sentencing, as each had its aggravating factors.
Members of the online community were shocked that the offenders were given only a week’s jail sentence.
“No wonder PMD riders are so brazen & arrogant. It’s coz they have insider’s information. Do you not think 1 week is too lenient?” asked Facebook user Yungz Chang.
“One week jail is total bullcrap. No respect to our LTA law enforcement at all,” said Facebook user Goh Chen Lin.
“What still had to do a show for all to see, what if he or she was (a member of) the public, will get only one week? Let us remember this sentence,” added netizen Lee Lin.
Meanwhile, others wondered why authorities were using free chat software for confidential information. /TISG
