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The Police have arrested 11 men, aged between 32 and 58, for their suspected involvement in an illegal transaction of Marine Gas Oil (MGO).

On 22 February 2026 at about 1.38am, officers from the Police Coast Guard arrested 11 crew members from a Singapore-registered tugboat and a foreign-registered tugboat in the sea off Selat Pauh, Singapore. 

Preliminary investigations revealed that four crew members of a Singapore registered tugboat allegedly misappropriated MGO valued at about $5,000 without their company’s knowledge. The MGO was allegedly intended to be sold illegally to seven crew members of a foreign-registered tugboat for personal financial gain.

The four crew members of the Singapore-registered tugboat will be charged in court on 23 February 2026 with the offence of criminal breach of trust by employees under Section 408(1) of the Penal Code 1871. The offence carries an imprisonment term, which may extend to 15 years and a fine.

The seven crew members of the foreign-registered tugboat will be charged in court on 23 February 2026 with the offence of attempted dishonestly receiving stolen property under Section 411(1) read with Section 511 of the Penal Code 1871. The offence carries an imprisonment term which may extend to five years, a fine, or both.

The Police take a serious view of illegal transactions of MGO in Singapore waters. The authorities will continue to conduct enforcement and security checks to prevent, deter, and detect such illicit activities in Singapore waters.


Annex

The tugboats involved in the illegal Marine Gas Oil transaction