A Singaporean who intended to take up arms in Syria travelled to Sri Lanka three times to meet radical preacher and suicide bomber Zahran Hashim.

Money changer Kuthubdeen Haja Najumudeen, 36, met Zahran - the mastermind behind April's Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka that killed more than 250 people - between May 2015 and October 2016, the Ministry of Home Affairs said yesterday while announcing Haja's arrest.

While investigations did not reveal any indication of Haja's involvement in the attacks, experts said the case shows how radicalised Singaporeans could link up with groups abroad, posing a threat to national security.

Haja was detained under the Internal Security Act in May. Another radicalised Singaporean, aged 47, was also detained this month.