Airport staff arrested for abusing airport pass

SINGAPORE - A 45-year-old male maintenance engineer was arrested at Changi Airport in February this year for abusing his airport pass to gain access into the restricted areas of Changi Airport for an unofficial purpose.

According to a statement from the Singapore Police Force, investigations revealed that the suspect was issued with an airport seasonal pass to enter the restricted areas of Changi Airport for the performance of official duties only.

On February 27, 2014, the suspect went to the restricted areas of Changi Airport to receive his wife and daughter. He was subsequently detected by an Auxiliary Police Officer, when he was assisting his wife and daughter to retrieve their check-in luggage. The Airport Police was then called and the accused was arrested.

The suspect will be charged in Court on March 6, 2014, for an offence of failure to comply with directions to regulate conduct in a Protected Place under Sec 5(2) p/u Sec 7 of the Protected Areas and Protected Places Act, Chapter 256.

Airport Police would like to advise that Changi Airport is gazette under the Protected Areas and Protected Places Act (PAPPA).

Holders of an airport pass are allowed to enter the designated restricted areas within the airport for the performance of official duties only.

Likewise, passengers who enter the transit hall with a boarding pass should only be there for the purpose of travelling to their next destinations. Members of public, who abuse their boarding pass to enter the transit areas to meet friends and/or celebrities, with no intention to proceed to their next destination, are liable for an offence under the PAPPA.

candicec@sph.com.sg