Man admits sending SM Lee doctored photo of Marina Bay Sands on fire as ‘prank’
An administrator of Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s Facebook page saw the image and message shortly after it was sent and lodged a police report.
Andie Tan Kok Yong at the State Courts on Jun 18, 2026. (Photo: CNA/Alyssa Tan)
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SINGAPORE: A man is facing jail time for sending an edited photo of Marina Bay Sands (MBS) on fire to Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s Facebook page while mentioning a “bomb”.
Andie Tan Kok Yong, a 35-year-old Singaporean, pleaded guilty on Thursday (Jun 18) to one charge of knowingly transmitting a false message under the Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act.
A second charge of obstructing the course of justice by performing a factory reset of his phone will be considered in sentencing.
THE CASE
In September 2025, Tan was using Facebook when he chanced on an image of Marina Bay Sands on fire.
Despite knowing it was fake, he saved the image on his phone and sent it to Mr Lee’s official Facebook page via the Facebook messenger function at about 3pm on Sep 29, 2025.
He also sent a message: “Bomb $1,500billion++wit management approved of 1st boss not merlion boss of tan jun yan”.
He did so in order to prank SM Lee, and he knew that either Mr Lee or someone reviewing the content would think that MBS had been bombed, the court heard.
An administrator of Mr Lee’s Facebook page who was monitoring the page at the time saw the image and message shortly after it was sent.
Concerned, he lodged a police report and took a screengrab of the communications.
The police informed the security management of MBS to step up security patrols and eventually identified Tan as the culprit.
He admitted to being the person who sent the image and message.
The prosecutor sought four to eight weeks’ jail for Tan, saying he had essentially perpetuated a bomb hoax.
“In essence, the accused had informed SM Lee (through his official Facebook page) that Marina Bay Sands had been bombed,” he said.
The prosecutor added that bomb hoaxes are egregious and clearly intended to create fear, exploit general apprehension and anxiety, and have massive potential to cause major disruptions to the public.
The target building here is of high value, he said, while acknowledging that the false transmission was not particularly credible.
Tan said nothing in mitigation.
Sentencing was adjourned to a later date.
For knowingly transmitting a false message, he could be jailed for up to three years, fined up to S$10,000, or both.
Source: CNA/ll(sn)
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