Singapore deports South Korean journalists in trespass case

SINGAPORE  — Singapore officials said Sunday that two South Korean journalists arrested on suspicion of trespassing at the residence of the North Korean ambassador have been deported.

“I think it’s a bad idea in any country to break into ambassador’s residences. No different in Singapore. Case closed. They have been asked to leave,” Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam said.

The two men represented the Korean Broadcasting System News and were arrested on Friday. They were not accredited as media personnel in Singapore.

The national broadcaster apologized for the incident in its Friday evening newscast.

Another KBS journalist and an interpreter are also under investigation. The maximum penalty for criminal trespass is a jail term of three months and a fine of 1,500 Singapore dollars.

Speaking to the media ahead of Tuesday’s summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Shanmugam added that authorities have had to prevent three or four individuals from entering the country.

On Saturday, immigration authorities turned away “someone from a regional country” who was found to be visiting websites on suicide bombing, he said.

Australian Zaky Mallah, who was once tried on terrorism charges, was prevented from entering the city-state on Thursday due to his history of extremism.

Police have stepped up security around “special event areas” such as the summit’s venue on Sentosa Island, and hotels where Trump and Kim are expected to stay. /ee