We refer to Ms See Swee Tin's letter, "Why is SD card from car dashcam kept for so long during police investigation?" (May 14).

To ensure thorough and fair investigation into road traffic accidents, it is essential for the Traffic Police (TP) to collect evidence and interview all involved parties.

As part of evidence collection, the police will review all original video footage, including in-vehicle camera recordings.

Where necessary, the police will also seize a copy of the video footage for the purpose of investigations. The storage device will be returned to the owner once the investigations have been completed. The duration of the process depends on the complexity of the case.

In Ms See's case, her SD card was retained by the TP on May 9 as part of evidence collection, and she was told then that the police might need to retain her card for about two to three weeks.

After the investigation officer had processed and reviewed the video footage, the SD card was returned to her on May 14, five days after it had been taken from her.

Brenda Ong (Deputy Superintendent)

Assistant Director (Public Communications Division)

Public Affairs Department

Singapore Police Force