SMRT says staff mistook graffiti on train for advert
SMRT says staff mistook graffiti on train for advert
By Imelda Saad | Posted: 08 June 2010 1844 hrs
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SINGAPORE: SMRT has explained why there was a lapse of two days before a police report was made about the train that was vandalised with graffiti. The company said its staff noticed the graffiti on the train on 17 May but did not sound the alarm as it was done artistically and they mistook it for an advertisement.
SMRT's deputy director for security and emergency planning, Choy Kin Chong, said: "They (staff) thought it was a commercial wrap, likewise several members of the public also spotted the graffiti but we did not receive any report." The alarm was raised two days later on 19 May at 4pm by maintenance staff when the train was recalled to the workshop for scheduled maintenance.
A police report was made then and investigations led to a discovery of the security breach at Changi Depot. SMRT said it immediately reviewed security measures in all its depots. The number of security personnel and patrols at each depot has increased, and security personnel instructed to step up their vigilance.
The number of security cameras will also be more than doubled, and there will be additional cameras installed at areas where the trains are launched daily at the depot. SMRT's Mr Choy said: "We intend to mount cameras and lighting system at the reception track so that for all the trains that depart the depot for service, we will be able to monitor the exterior part of the train."
Police have said that 33-year-old Swiss national, Oliver Fricker, and his accomplice, Briton Lloyd Dane Alexander, had broken into the Changi Depot and spray-painted two train carriages between 17 and 18 May. Fricker was arrested on 25 May. The vandals had broken through a 3-km perimeter fence and cut through the wires to enter the depot. Once inside, they spray-painted graffiti on one side of a train.
There are trees in the background, which act as camouflage for the trespassers, and flood lights at the back which are said to have given the vandals ample lighting as they went about doing their work. Hence, going forward the perimeter fence will be strengthened with coiled barbed wires at the base.
SMRT's Mr Choy said: "The coiled wire will be able to strengthen the base of the fence, because of its construction, and it comes with razor-shaped blades...it will be very difficult for a potential attacker to cut the wire and even if they were to crawl in, they will probably incur some injury." SMRT is also considering the use of hi-tech detection and warning systems around its perimeter.
"At the moment the fence is not equipped with those surveillance and intrusion detection systems. With the incorporation of such systems we would be able to detect, perhaps even prevent a possible incursion in all our depots," said Mr Choy. SMRT also says that any intruder who attempts to sabotage the trains runs the risk of being electrocuted as the tracks which power the trains give out 750 volts of direct current.
When asked why it took about three weeks before news of the security breach was made public, Mr Choy said: "During the period the case was under police investigation and we could not reveal too much about the incident." Separately, the Swiss Embassy in Singapore told MediaCorp it is providing consular care to the accused, Oliver Fricker. This includes helping the business consultant find a lawyer and possibly observe court hearings.
It added that Fricker has to be considered innocent unless proven guilty. It said that Swiss nationals living or holidaying in Singapore are expected to obey the country's laws. "Nonetheless, certain punishments such as corporal punishment are foreign to Swiss legal conception," said Peter Zimmerli, counsellor and deputy head of mission at the Swiss Embassy.
Fricker is now out on a $100,000 bail. His employer, Comit AG, an IT consultancy firm, said Fricker is suspended, pending the outcome of investigations. A check on Fricker's Facebook page shows his profile has been taken off. The news has attracted international attention and is widely reported in the Swiss media.
The blogosphere has also been abuzz with comments, with many taking aim at the security lapse. One netizen said: "A normal guy like him can get into a restricted area, I wonder what a team of well-trained terrorists can do." Another netizen called it a "breach of security" and a "serious matter". A third netizen said, albeit tongue in cheek, "it is a beautiful spray-painting. But if he is going to paint it on my car, it would be courteous of him to ask for my permission first".
Meanwhile the hunt is still on for Fricker's accomplice, Briton Lloyd Dane Alexander, who left Singapore before the incident was reported. He is believed to be in Hong Kong. If arrested, he can be brought back, as Singapore and Hong Kong have an extradition treaty. Police say they have also alerted all Interpol member countries to look out for Lloyd Dane Alexander and to give any information to Singapore, should he be found in their jurisdiction.
- CNA/ir
