4 arrested over 'HDB brothel'

A man and three women were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly carrying out prostitution activities in a Housing Board flat in Jurong West.

Neighbours had raised concerns that a brothel was being run in their midst.

A spokesman for the police said they responded to a call for assistance at 8.45pm. They went to the fifth-storey flat at Block 669B, where the four suspects were arrested.

The owner of the flat, who wanted to be known only as Madam Chai, told The Straits Times that she had rented the flat out to four men and two women on Monday for around $3,000 a month. They were all from China.

The 60-year-old said: "In our contract, we stated that there must be no immoral activities. I did tell my neighbours to keep a lookout on the number of men and women entering the flat.

"Now that police are involved, I chased the other tenants out immediately.

"I don't want this sort of hanky-panky to happen again. I don't want to rent out my flat any more - once bitten, twice shy."

One neighbour told Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao that there are secondary schools in the vicinity, and he did not want students to be exposed to such illicit activities. He said he hoped that police will step up security in the estate.

Police investigations are ongoing.

The maximum penalty for living on a prostitute's earnings is a five-year jail term and $10,000 in fines

This article was first published on Sep 4, 2014.
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