Two China workers charged with criminal trespass

SINGAPORE: Two workers from China who sat on top of two construction cranes for hours on Thursday have been charged in court with criminal trespass.

Zhu Guilei, 24, and Wu Xiaolin, 47, were offered bail of $10,000 each.

As of 9.30pm, Channel NewsAsia understands that they have not been bailed out and are held in remand at Changi Prison.

They said in court that they intend to claim trial but won’t be engaging counsel.

Both men will be back in court on December 12 for a pre—trial conference.

The two are accused of unlawfully remaining on the cranes for about nine hours at a worksite at Jurong Port Road with intent to alarm the project manager of their employer with threatening behaviour.

The maximum penalty for criminal trespass is three months’ jail and a fine of $1,500.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Manpower Ministry said its checks have shown that the two workers did not have any salary owing to them.

An MOM spokesperson said the salary dispute between the employer and the two workers was also resolved not long after they were brought down from the cranes.

After the workers were brought down, MOM said one of its officers asked why they had not gone back to the Ministry with their supporting documents to substantiate their claims.

To this, one of the workers is said to have told the officer that going to MOM to lodge claims was "troublesome".

It has been reported that the two workers had gone to the Ministry a day earlier to claim they had outstanding salaries owed to them.

However, MOM officers told them to return with necessary documents to support their claims, so that the issue could be investigated.

MOM said it is also investigating whether the company has breached any statutory provisions under the Employment Act.

— CNA/de