Holding a Trash Bag, Crossing the Sea to Singapore... The Story of a Man Who Entered Illegally

Swimming from Malaysia to Singapore's Changi Beach
Charged four times for illegal entry and deported
"Had to earn money for my child and sick parents"

The story of an Indonesian man who swam across the sea to Singapore relying on a garbage bag filled with air has become a hot topic.

According to the South China Morning Post on the 4th, Indonesian man Muhammad Ijar (34) was sentenced by a Singapore court on the 2nd to 15 months in prison and 7 strokes of caning for illegal entry. He had previously been prosecuted and deported four times for illegal entry into Singapore. In this situation, he chose the sea route as his last illegal entry path. Although he managed to set foot on Singapore soil, he was caught by authorities after 10 months.

[Photo by Pixabay]

Ijar's attempts to illegally enter Singapore began in 2021. He was deported by the Singapore government in August of the same year but illegally entered Singapore again, resulting in a one-year prison sentence and 6 strokes of caning in September. After being released from prison, Ijar was handed over to the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) of Singapore and deported to Indonesia in May last year with a written notice stating "entry is prohibited in the future." The notice specified that "to enter or reside in Singapore in the future, prior written permission from the Singapore Immigration and Checkpoints Authority must be obtained," and "violation of this will result in imprisonment for 1 to 3 years."

After staying in his home country for 7 months, Ijar planned to return to Singapore again. This time, his plan was to swim illegally via the sea route. He took a boat from Indonesia to Malaysia. After spending two nights at Stulang Laut in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, he swam toward Pulau Ubin Island in Singapore. During this process, it is known that he used a black garbage bag filled with air as a flotation device. Upon arriving at Pulau Ubin Island, Ijar rested for 30 minutes and then swam toward Changi Beach in Singapore, successfully entering Singapore without being detected by authorities.

He then stayed illegally in Singapore for about 10 months but was caught again last month when he failed to present documents to a police officer requesting his residence permit. Subsequent investigations by the Singapore Immigration and Checkpoints Authority revealed his past illegal entry records.

Ijar reportedly expressed, "I am sorry," and said, "I had to earn money for my children and sick parents back home."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.