Clarke Quay New Year's Eve gathering
4 more charged with breaching Covid-19 rules
They allegedly failed to observe safe management measures at potential superspreading event
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Four more people linked to a New Year's Eve gathering at Clarke Quay were charged in court yesterday.
Lee Hern Sing, Varghese Divin, Adam Abdullah and Assiddiq Surani, aged between 19 and 30, faced charges for allegedly breaching multiple safe management measures under the Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) (Control Order) Regulations 2020.
Varghese, Adam and Assiddiq faced charges over failing to keep a 1m safe distance and not wearing a mask. Lee, who also faced a charge over failing to keep a safe distance, was also charged with attending a gathering comprising more than five people to record footage of street interviews near Read Bridge, outside Riverside Point, on Dec 31.
Lee was represented by Mr Tan Kah Tian, who asked for two weeks to make representations for his client. Lee's next date in court will be on April 19.
Varghese and Adam, who did not have a lawyer, indicated their intention to plead guilty. Varghese will return to court on April 12 and Adam on April 19.
Assiddiq, who was also unrepresented, wanted to claim trial, saying he had not intended to commit the charges against him. He will return to court on April 6 for a pre-trial conference during which he can present evidence and witnesses to support his case.
With the four charged yesterday, 14 people have been taken to court in relation to the same incident, the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA) said on Monday.
Ms Lim Shu Yi, the lawyer of Kotra Venkata Sai Rohankrishna, who was one of those charged earlier, was in court yesterday and indicated her client would likely be pleading guilty.
Kotra's next court date is on April 12. He faces charges that include allegedly attending the gathering in a Spider-Man costume with three others and interacting with about 20 people.
URA said another three people have been served notices of composition of a $1,000 fine each, bringing the total number served with such notices to 19. The incident, which was caught on video and uploaded online, is believed to have involved hundreds in a spontaneous countdown party in front of Riverside Point.
The multi-ministry task force tackling the pandemic said in January that the gathering had led to blatant breaches of rules, calling it a potential superspreading event.
