Man Caught Running Away From NEA Officers After Getting Caught Smoking Under Shelter

Before starting the article properly, I have a burning question I suddenly thought of in the shower one day.

To my non-smoking comrades: Do you feel like your sense of smell is generally better than your peers who smoke, almost as good as that of… dogs?

The minute a smoker boards the bus, trust me on this. I. Would. Know.

Most of my peers smoke but I for one, am not a fan of the cigarette smoke smell. Not my kind of chou.

So if a smoker’s sense of smell isn’t good, that means they can’t smell NEA officers.

Like this man who’s just become the star of this article.

What Happened

On 2 March 2019 (last Saturday), a man was seen escaping from the clutches of two National Environment Agency (NEA) officers at a sheltered walkway just behind Tanglin Shopping Centre.

In Chinese, we say that this man 吃饱没事做 (Translation: Too free after eating). In English or the Singaporean context, we would say that this man tried to be a hero.

If you, like our said hero, have no idea how Singapore works, thank me later.

Smoking Law in Singapore

As of October 2012, the Authorities have declared that smoking is prohibited in a couple of areas from public facilities to private properties.

Yes, that includes walkways – covered or underground, permanent or temporary.

But then again, he had his reasons for escaping.

If he was caught, he would be liable to a fine of S$200 or up to S$1,000 if convicted in court.

What Went Down

According to a video posted by Collins Voo on Facebook, a man in white was confronted by the NEA officers, and struggled to flee on many instances.

Here’s a breakdown in .gifs because we’re good like that: So, our hero seemed to have been caught, and for some reason, decided that he could outrun the officers.

But for reasons only known to the Smoking God, he slipped while sprinting, presumably due to the sudden change in direction.

But alas, our hero refused to give up and tried to escape again.

Since then, NEA has verified that action was taken against the offender eventually. He finally decided to cooperate with the officers upon arrival of the police.

Turns out he initially lied about having his particulars during his first encounter with the NEA officers.

The 24-second long video can be found on SG Road Vigilante’s Facebook Page.

Netizens’ Comments

Though this video didn’t cause as much uproar and re-shares as compared to the infamous Go-Jek Kidnapping incident, some Singaporeans caught a whiff of the news and had something to say – for good or for worse.

Others had a different way of thinking.

The lesson here?

Whoever thinks that NEA officers can’t run is wrong.