Singapore reports 3rd coronavirus-linked death

A 70-year-old man in Singapore on Sunday died of the novel coronavirus after fighting the disease for 27 days, taking the country's death toll in COVID-19 pandemic to three, officials said.

The patient, a Singaporean citizen with no recent travel history to affected countries and regions, died at about 12.12 PM on Sunday, Channel News Asia quoted Ministry of Health as saying.

The patient developed serious complications and eventually died due to the infection. He had a history of hypertension and hyperlipidaemia, the ministry said.

He was admitted to the Singapore General Hospital on February 29, and was confirmed to have COVID-19 infection on March 2.

On March 21, a 75-year-old Singaporean woman and a 64-year-old Indonesian man died of the disease.

The woman had a history of chronic heart disease and hypertension, while the man had a history of heart disease.

On Saturday, Singapore reported 70 new coronavirus cases, bringing the total number of infections to 802.

Nineteen of the 420 confirmed cases still in hospital are in critical condition in the intensive care unit.

Meanwhile, the passport of a Singaporean man has been cancelled for flouting stay-home notice rules, a first tough action taken by the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) on Sunday.

Goh Illya Victor, 53, had travelled from Singapore to the nearby Indonesian island of Batam. He returned to Singapore about two weeks ago via a ferry and was served with the stay-home notice at entry point.

But he went back to Batam on same day despite the stay-home notice and warnings from ICA officers in breach of the notice, attracting penalties.

Those under the notice are not allowed to leave their homes for 14 days, or they can face a fine of up to 10,000 Singapore dollars (USD 7,003) or up to six months in prison, or both.

Last Tuesday, he returned to Singapore through the Singapore Cruise Centre and was issued a second notice.

The ICA said Goh displayed "irresponsible conduct" for not complying with the first stay-home notice and then returning to Singapore last Tuesday.

"In view of the wilful breach, the ICA has cancelled his passport and referred the case to the Ministry of Health for investigation," it said in a statement.

This means that Goh, without a valid passport, cannot leave the country. He remains a Singapore citizen.