Clip shows man tossing bike into canal, then riding another in MRT station

A Snapchat video showing a man hurling a yellow bicycle into a canal (left) late on Thursday night. He is then filmed riding around in an MRT station, said to be Punggol MRT station, on an ofo bike.
A Snapchat video showing a man hurling a yellow bicycle into a canal (above) late on Thursday night. He is then filmed riding around in an MRT station, said to be Punggol MRT station, on an ofo bike. PHOTOS: STOMP
A Snapchat video showing a man hurling a yellow bicycle into a canal (left) late on Thursday night. He is then filmed riding around in an MRT station, said to be Punggol MRT station, on an ofo bike.
A Snapchat video showing a man hurling a yellow bicycle into a canal late on Thursday night. He is then filmed riding around in an MRT station, said to be Punggol MRT station, on an ofo bike. PHOTOS: STOMP

Days after a bicycle from bike-sharing app ofo was thrown from the 30th storey of a Housing Board block, another two-wheeler, this time from oBike, has been filmed being thrown into a canal.

The police confirmed that a report on the incident had been lodged and investigations are ongoing.

In a Snapchat clip of the incident, which is understood to have happened late on Thursday night, a shirtless young man is seen hurling the rental bike from oBike into a canal.

He is then filmed riding around Punggol MRT station, on an ofo bike. He rides the bike into a dustbin, and cruises on a road, very near a public bus, at what appears to be the Punggol Temporary Bus Interchange.

The video was sent to Stomp.

Bike company ofo said that it made a police report, but did not share further details on the case, saying it was working with the police and other authorities.

"We treat these incidents very seriously, and this is something that goes beyond vandalism and bike misuse as it poses a threat to the safety of everyone around," a spokesman said. "We also wholeheartedly encourage anyone with knowledge of the perpetrators to offer any information they possess to local authorities, or to contact us directly (report-sg@ofo.so), so that we may continue to coordinate with law enforcement officials."

oBike said it took a stern view of the actions of the rider.

"We condemn this senseless act and will not hesitate to take legal action against members of the public who abuse our bicycles. We are in the process of lodging a police report regarding this matter," said Mr Elgin Ee, general manager of oBike, a Singapore-registered company.

A spokesman for Go-Ahead Singapore yesterday said it was aware of the incident at the bus interchange and had lodged a police report.

A 14-year-old boy was arrested for committing a rash act in the incident in which a bike was thrown from Block 116B, Jalan Tenteram.

Bicycles from three bike-sharing companies - ofo, oBike and Mobike - have been found in canals, repainted or damaged and discarded.

The China-based ofo said it would continue to help the authorities regulate the bike-sharing industry.

Some initiatives include increasing the number of designated parking spots, educating the community on responsible biking practices, and encouraging the community to report these incidents on their Facebook page and app.

"Additionally, we are constantly looking at other ways to do so, including improving bike technology to better, and more effectively, identify and minimise these situations," the spokesman said.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 20, 2017, with the headline Clip shows man tossing bike into canal, then riding another in MRT station. Subscribe