A 16-year-old boy has been arrested by Singaporean authorities under the country’s tough new terrorism laws after it was discovered he had been playing on “multiple Islamic State-themed servers”. Roblox‘.
The boy, who cannot be named because he is a minor, “was granted a restraining order in January, restricting his freedom of movement and preventing him from making public statements,” SCMP reports.
In 2020, when he was just 14, he was first brought to the attention of Singapore’s Department of Internal Security (ISD) after it was discovered he had been spending a lot of time role-playing as an ISIS fighter Roblox:
Using the platform to recreate Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis) conflict zones such as Syria and the city of Marawi in the southern Philippines, he considered himself an Isis member and brought the baiah (loyalty) to an “Isis” im game guide”.
He played out his fantasies in-game – where he would shoot and kill enemies and take on roles as “spokesman” and “chief propagandist” for his virtual Isis faction, the ISD said in its statement.
“Teen also found himself drawn to Islamic eschatological prophecies after watching YouTube videos,” CNA reports, “and came across Islamic State songs on online music streaming platforms”. He was noted to have “an interest in far-right content, including that which is anti-Semitic and supports neo-Nazi groups whose ideologies promote ‘race war'”.
The boy is also said to have been in contact with Muhammad Irfan Danyal Mohamad Nor, an 18-year-old who was arrested in December 2022 under Singapore’s sweeping (and highly controversial) Homeland Security Act, which allows the government to track terror suspects imprisoned for up to two years without trial. Irfan planned to “establish an Islamic caliphate Coney Island in Singapore“.
