The Straits Times – 27 Oct 2000

Illegal caught in holiday raid on worksite

By Chong Chee Kin

Five immigrant offenders were nabbed by a security firm when it gatecrashed the Deepavali celebrations at a Punggol construction site early yesterday morning.

       Three were women, who are not allowed on site. They were in a room with two Thai employees.

      The security firm, Safe Technology, had raided the place in behalf of the site's main contractor, Chew Eu Hock Construction.

      The firm's director, Mr Henry Siow, said yesterday that everything looked normal when the 40-strong raiding party arrived shortly after 1.30 am.

      The workers were at the canteen, chatting and singing songs to celebrate Deepavali.

      But when the security officers checked the three-storey living quarters, they caught two Thai workers climbing out of a ground floor window.

      They had legitimate work permits but the three Thai women found hiding under a bed in the room did not. All three were immigration offenders.

      The women and two other immigration offenders, an Indonesian and a Thai, were handed over to the police.