Gang fights 2.0: How social media is being used to recruit members and threaten rivals
Gangs in Singapore are using online platforms to recruit, taunt and threaten rivals. The Straits Times has found more than 60 social media posts related to gangs – some dating back to 2021.
Gangsters in our midst: An Insight package
An investigation into how social media platforms are being used by gangs in Singapore.
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Gangs are uploading videos and images on TikTok, Facebook, YouTube and Telegram to recruit new members and also taunt and threaten rivals.
The Straits Times found more than 60 posts related to gangs in Singapore – some dating back to 2021 – on the platforms.
A short video on TikTok showing a group of men chanting “Hai Lok San”, the name of a local gang, at a funeral had 41,000 likes, while another clip of a woman singing an anthem of the gang “369” received 10,000 likes.
ST understands that TikTok subsequently removed a video clip that showed a heavily tattooed man challenging a rival to a fight, and a separate clip purportedly by the gang “303” that appeared to be used to recruit members.
The videos were found to have infringed on the platform’s community guidelines to not incite violence.