Bag causes bomb scare at Singapore's central bank

Asian Economic News, Oct 8, 2001

SINGAPORE, Oct. 4 Kyodo

A bag lying on the ground floor of the Monetary Authority of Singapore building triggered a bomb scare Thursday.

''We took the necessary security precautions of having the bag investigated by the police, and have been given the all clear,'' the central bank said in a statement.

Singapore has tightened security measures in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon outside Washington.

The bag was found unattended on the ground floor of the building at about 1:30 p.m., when most employees had already gone out for lunch.

A spokeswoman said there was no order to evacuate the building.

Singapore police declined to comment further about the removal of the bag, or if the owner had been identified.

The central bank occupies a few floors of the 30-story building, which is located at the heart of the city-state's financial district.