American denied bail for triggering bomb scare on Singapore Airlines flight

SINGAPORE: A 37-year-old American man, who was arrested last month for allegedly causing a bomb threat and assaulting a passenger on board Singapore Airlines flight, was denied bail on Thursday after a psychiatrist determined that he posed a danger to the public.

The incident happened on September 29 when the police received information that one of the passengers in the flight SQ33 carrying 209 people from San Francisco to Singapore claimed that he was carrying a bomb in his bag and assaulted a cabin crew member, The Straits Times newspaper reported.

La Andy Hien Duc was charged with using threatening words and voluntarily causing hurt. He did not appear in court on Thursday and had applied to be released on bail. He has been remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for psychiatric observation.

In her written submissions, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Lim Ying Min objected to Hien Duc being released on bail and said that the IMH psychiatrist has assessed that the accused poses a danger to the public.

"The stressors of being in a foreign country, including the fact that he has no fixed place to stay and no one to monitor his compliance with his medications, are risk factors for relapse," she said.

Hien Duc is diagnosed with schizophrenia, the report said. DPP Lim also said that Hien Duc was a flight risk. She noted that he is an American citizen with no roots in Singapore and does not own any residential property and is not employed here.

"There is therefore a real risk that the accused will abscond should he be released on bail. If this (happens), it will erode public confidence in the criminal justice system," she said.

Hien Duc is expected to appear in court on October 27, the report said.