Man arrested for scam

A 22-year-old man has been arrested for cheating victims of their money through a mobile dating app.

Between March and May, police said they received several reports from female victims saying they had been cheated of their money by an online scammer.

The suspect befriended the victims through a dating app. He purportedly told the victims that he was involved in a vehicle accident while texting them and required money to settle the matter privately with the other party.

The suspect told some of the victims that he was an interior designer and needed money for a "work project".

After the money was transferred, he would keep giving excuses to avoid repayment, the police said in a news release yesterday.

Following investigations, officers from the Tanglin Division established the identity of the suspect and arrested him.

Any person found guilty for an offence of cheating may be punished with imprisonment of up to 10 years and a fine.

Man jailed for attempted rape

A 22-year-old man with mild intellectual disability who tried to rape his step-niece, then aged four, was yesterday sentenced to six years in jail and three strokes of the cane.

The man, who cannot be named under a court order, was 18 years old at the time of the offence. He lived with his stepfather in a two-room HDB flat after his mother remarried in July 2011. After she died, he continued living there. In January 2012, the stepfather's daughter and her daughter - the victim - moved into the flat as well.

In February 2012, the girl, who wanted to play with him, sat on him while they were on a mattress. He became aroused and tried to have sex with her, but did not succeed.

The girl then ran to the kitchen, crying and telling her mother that her uncle tried to "kacau" ("disturb" in Malay) her.

When the girl complained of persistent pain in her genital area, her mother sought medical help and the case was reported to the police. The man was assessed to have an IQ of 61, but was aware that his act was wrong.

AVA probes two fresh cat deaths

In the latest in a series of apparent cat abuse cases in Yishun, two of the animals were found dead in the estate yesterday morning.

The Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority (AVA) said it is investigating the two fresh cat deaths.

In a Facebook post by the Yishun 326 Tabby cat page, one of the cats is pictured lying flat at Block 115C, Yishun Ring Road, while the other was found behind the pump room at Block 170.

The AVA asked the public not to speculate in the meantime, as not all animal deaths are due to animal cruelty.

It said that of the 47 cases of cats reported dead or injured in Yishun since September last year, only three were confirmed to be cases of animal cruelty.

Fourteen cases were due to other causes, such as road traffic accidents, sickness and "accidental falls from height".

Five cases are under investigation, and 25 cases remain open due to insufficient leads.

Members of the public can report animal cruelty cases to the AVA by calling its 24-hour hotline, 1800-476-1600.