A 17-year-old self-radicalised Singaporean was arrested under the Internal Security Act (ISA) mere weeks before his plan to carry out a terror attack in the Housing Board heartlands.
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The student, described in a Friday press release by the Internal Security Department (ISD) as a “staunch” Islamic State supporter, wanted to use either a kitchen knife or a pair of scissors from his home as his weapon.
Since 2020, ISD has detained five self-radicalised youths who wanted to carry out attacks in Singapore using such easily accessible weapons. Such attacks require little time and preparation to execute, said the department.
In this particular case, the youth was determined to follow through with his plan and was less than a month away from executing it at the time of his arrest in August, it added.
He had planned to attack non-Muslim males near Tampines West Community Centre, during the school holidays in September. Following his arrest, the teenager was issued a two-year detention order in September as well.
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The youth chose the Tampines location as it had high footfall and was within walking distance from his home, ISD said.
He also took “concrete steps” to prepare himself for the attack, the agency added.