SINGAPORE: A 15-year-old has been arrested in relation to a bomb hoax at Xinmin Secondary School last week, police said on Tuesday (Aug 18).

Students and staff members at the Hougang school were briefly evacuated last Thursday morning following a "potential bomb threat”. Xinmin Secondary said that it immediately contacted the police upon learning of the potential threat.

In response to CNA's queries, police confirmed that a teenager had been arrested in connection with the case, but provided no further details about the suspect.

"Police investigations are ongoing," they added.

No suspicious items were found by authorities after the school’s premises were checked and regular lessons resumed later that day.

The police said then that they were investigating the incident as a case of communicating false information of a harmful thing.

Anyone convicted of communicating false information of a harmful thing may face up to seven years' jail, a fine of up to S$50,000 (US$39,000) or both. Cases involving offenders under 16 are typically dealt with in the Youth Court.

The latest bomb hoax comes four years after a similar incident at Evergreen Secondary School in Woodlands. Even though the threat was determined to be false, such security threats should still be taken seriously, the Ministry of Home Affairs then said.