SINGAPORE - Mr Faliq Shazwin was riding his motorbike home at 2am on Aug 28 when he saw two men chasing another man.

Thinking it was a gang fight and the man being chased might need help, he instinctively dropped his bike and ran after them.

It was only when the two men shouted that they were the police that Mr Shazwin realised they were plainclothes policemen, and he eventually helped them pin down the man as he struggled.

The latter was subsequently arrested for an offence under the Immigration Act and for the possession of duty-unpaid cigarettes.

Mr Shazwin's bravery was honoured by the Singapore Police Force (SPF) on Tuesday (Nov 19) when he, along with three others, was presented with the Public Spiritedness Award at the Woodlands Police Division.

The 22-year-old, who previously served in the SPF during his national service (NS), said: "The NS training definitely came in useful - to stay calm and access the situation. I was even able to apply the restrain techniques learnt."

"Even though I've completed NS, I am still a police officer at heart and will help whenever possible," he added.

Another award recipient, Ms Cheo Yi Love, was also recognised for her quick thinking and alertness in foiling an Internet love scam on July 30.

In the first month on the job as a service executive at the United Overseas Bank (UOB) Woodlands branch, Ms Cheo serviced a 61-year-old customer, who wanted to withdraw $12,500 and then deposit the sum into a third-party account.

Sensing that something was amiss, as the woman appeared anxious and refused a direct bank transfer, Ms Cheo quickly alerted her supervisor, deputy branch manager Roy Cheong.

Mr Cheong brought the lady to a private room and probed further, before realising that she was trying to transfer the money to a man she had befriended online.

He advised her to make a police report and accompanied the victim until her son arrived.

Mr Cheong also told The Straits Times: "All UOB front-line employees undergo a series of training to help us in detecting suspicious and unusual activities at the branch. Through the training, we are also better equipped to identify the signs of a scam."

Both Mr Cheong and Ms Cheo received the award.

The final recipient was Mr Muhammad Hairi, who had assisted police in detaining a man for suspected drug related offences on Nov 6.

Another four awards were given out at the Clementi Police Division as well: one Public Spiritedness Award and three Community Partnership Award to three organisations.

The Public Spiritedness Award recipient, Mr Abu Aris, had noticed a man behaving suspiciously outside his neighbour's unit on Sept 7 and recorded a video of him on his mobile phone.

He noticed the man take something from outside his neighbour's flat and place it into his backpack. Mr Aris then followed the accused and detained him at a bus stop before calling the police, leading to the man's arrest.

Mount Faber Leisure Group, the National University of Singapore (NUS) campus security and Queensway Secondary School were awarded the Community Partnership Award in appreciation of their significant contributions in fighting crime.