SINGAPORE: Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean has expressed his dissatisfaction over the security breach at Woodlands Checkpoint as well as the subsequent response actions.

The Police and the Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said on Tuesday that a 27-year-old Malaysian woman, with a history of mental illness, had been arrested at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) for criminal trespass.

The woman had entered Singapore via Woodlands Checkpoint in a Malaysian-registered car last Friday (January 17), and managed to leave the checkpoint without being stopped as officers-in-charge did not immediately raise the alarm.

Three days later, as earlier reported online by Channel NewsAsia, the woman headed to the MFA compound at Sherwood Road, where she apparently tail-gated a car to enter the premises.

In a statement issued on Tuesday evening, Mr Teo said the breach at Woodlands Checkpoint, which resulted in the trespassing at the MFA, could have resulted in "more serious consequences than what occurred".

Mr Teo, who is also Minister for Home Affairs, said the incident should have been prevented and dealt with more urgently and decisively.

Mr Teo added that he has directed both the Police and the ICA to give him a report on “the corrective actions they are taking, and recommend appropriate action to be taken against officers who have not discharged their duties properly."

The woman driver is currently under police custody and investigations are on-going. She is also being investigated for immigration evasion.