SINGAPORE – The top three crimes committed by teenagers here in 2023 were shoplifting, cheating and related offenses, and sexual offenses involving influence.

A total of 509 young offenders aged between 10 and 21 years of age committed shoplifting, followed by 422 people in the same age group who were involved in cheating and similar crimes, the majority of which were linked to fraud and cybercrime.

There were 250 young people who committed sexual offenses involving penetration.

These trends were featured in the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s (MSF) first Youth Rehabilitation Support Trends Report, published on 8 November. The report provides an overview of key youth rehabilitation and disturbing trends from 2019 to 2023.

Compared to older youth ages 18 to 21 or younger youth ages 10 to 16, those ages 16 to 18 had the highest likelihood of offending.

To support this group, the Children and Young Persons Act (CYPA) was amended to allow cases involving older youth offenders aged 16 to 18 to be heard in the Youth Court. MSF said in a statement on November 8 that the change will be effective from January 1, 2025.

Currently the Youth Court only deals with cases involving young offenders under the age of 16. Persons aged 16 and over are tried as adults in the State or Community Court unless they have been removed from the criminal justice system.

“The aim of this change is to ensure that these older youth offenders receive age-appropriate rehabilitation as they may not have the cognitive maturity to understand the seriousness of offending,” an MSF spokesperson said.

Accordingly, since a Juvenile Rehabilitation Order can last up to three years, the maximum age limit for detention in a place of detention such as the Singapore Boys’ Home and the Juvenile Rehabilitation Center will be increased to 21 years of age.

The Ministry noted that in order to ensure public safety and deter crime, older youth who commit more serious crimes such as certain sexual offenses, unlicensed loan sharking and drug trafficking may face cases in the State Courts.

The change will potentially expand rehabilitation to approximately 50 young offenders aged 16 to 18 by the end of 2025, better providing age-appropriate support based on the specific risks and needs of these young people.

MSF said it is making infrastructure arrangements to accommodate older youth at the Singapore Boys Home and Singapore Girls Home, hiring and upskilling staff, and working with educational institutions to expand the academic and vocational opportunities available to residents.

The report said Singapore’s youth crime rate remained low, averaging 5.2 per 1,000 youth from 2019 to 2023, compared to 7.6 per 1,000 children in New Zealand and 2.8 per 1,000 in Japan .