The owner of a Singapore-registered vehicle suspected of covering its licence plate to obtain subsidised fuel has been identified.
Kulai district police chief Superintendent Tan Seng Lee confirmed this afternoon that the vehicle owner is a Malaysian citizen who holds Singapore permanent resident status and is currently in Singapore.
“Police have contacted the vehicle owner and instructed him to report to the Traffic Investigation and Enforcement Division at the Kulai district police headquarters as soon as possible to assist in the investigation,” he said.
The case is being investigated under Section 198(3)(e) of the Road Transport Act 1987. The police also advised the public not to alter or attempt to conceal vehicle registration numbers, as doing so is an offence under the law.
Earlier, the incident drew widespread attention after netizens tracked down the vehicle, which was believed to be parked at a public housing car park in Yishun, Singapore. Photos of the car circulated on social media, sparking renewed public discussion.
The incident reportedly occurred at about 10.35pm on January 2 at a petrol station in Kulai, where members of the public noticed the Singapore-registered vehicle using black tape to cover the first letter “S” and the last letter “M” on its licence plate. The male driver was seen refuelling RON 95 petrol using a cashless payment method.
When confronted by members of the public, the driver stopped refuelling. A woman accompanying him claimed that both of them were Malaysians holding Malaysian identity cards and attempted to prevent the public from photographing the concealed licence plate.
