SINGAPORE, Oct 18 — A 17-year-old Singaporean was arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA) in August, less than a month before he planned to carry out an attack during the September school holidays in the island republic.
The Internal Security Department (ISD) said the self-radicalised student, who was a staunch supporter of the Daesh group, had also planned to travel to Syria to engage in armed violence.
He was issued a two-year Order of Detention in September.
“ISD’s investigation to date found that the youth acted alone and was unsuccessful in radicalising his followers or contacts.
“His family and friends were unaware of his plans to conduct an attack in Singapore or engage in armed violence in Syria,” it said in a statement today.
The youth became exposed to the teachings of foreign radical preachers while searching for religious knowledge online in August last year.
Exposure to pro-Daesh material online led him down the path of radicalisation, and he joined various online groups that provided updates on the group’s activities.
By January this year, he had become a staunch supporter of the group and took a bai'yah (pledge of allegiance) in May.
Inspired by Daesh’s propaganda, the youth decided to conduct the attack on non-Muslim males at the Housing and Development Board heartlands near the Tampines West Community Centre.
ISD said he chose the location as it had a high footfall and was within walking distance from his home.
The youth was determined to be killed by the police or passers-by during his attack, as it would fulfil his aspiration to become a martyr.
Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam described the case as “a very close shave” and said it is very fortunate that ISD arrested the youth in time.
“People go around in Singapore feeling safe, so you could easily have gone on a rampage and killed a lot of people around here.
“I mean, just scan around you, look at the kind of people who are around. Kids are playing, senior citizens are resting. They are easy targets for such an attacker, and because of his radicalisation and closeness to the fruition of his plans, we decided it was safer to detain him,” he told the press.
A transcript of the media doorstop was provided on the Home Affairs Ministry’s website.
— Bernama
