The Police have arrested a 38-year-old man for allegedly attacking and injuring two police officers with a stun device, which is a prohibited item in Singapore.
On 29 October 2023 at about 2.50am, two Traffic Police officers, aged 32 and 29, were conducting a vehicular patrol along Victoria Street when they spotted a speeding vehicle. The officers signaled for the male driver to pull over, but he stopped along the second lane of the road instead. When officers approached the driver to ask for his NRIC and driving licence, he only produced his NRIC for identification. To avoid further obstruction to other road users, the officers directed the driver to move his car to the side of the road for further checks.
The driver complied and stopped his car on lane three of the three-lane road near the junction of North Bridge Road and Jalan Sultan. He then dashed out of his car suddenly and fled on foot with his belongings that exposed a black object resembling the handle of a weapon.
The officers gave chase and managed to stop the man at a back alley near Jalan Klapa. The man dropped his belongings and a samurai sword with a black handle dropped out during the ensuing struggle with officers. The man then allegedly brandished a stun device in his possession and used it to tase the officers repeatedly. Despite their injuries caused by the stun device, the officers were able to subdue and arrest the man with the help of a passer-by, who was a 22-year-old off-duty full-time national serviceman from the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
The 32-year-old officer suffered back injuries and was conveyed to hospital where he was subsequently discharged with medical leave. The other 29-year-old officer suffered injuries to his left hand and leg.
The stun device, one samurai sword, two knuckledusters, a chopper, a dagger, various drug paraphernalia, and controlled drugs comprising a total of about 236g of ‘Ice’, 11g of heroin, 56 Erimin-5 tablets and two ‘Ecstasy’ tablets were seized from the man as case exhibits.
The 38-year-old man will be charged in court on 30 October 2023 for the following offences:
- Six counts of voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from the discharge of his duty under Section 332 of the Penal Code 1871 punishable with an imprisonment for a term of up to seven years, and a fine or caning;
- Two counts of possession of offensive weapon under Section 6 of the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act 1958 punishable with an imprisonment for a term of up to three years and caning with not less than six strokes;
- Three counts of possession of scheduled weapon under Section 7 of the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act 1958 punishable with an imprisonment for a term of up to five years and caning with not less than six strokes;
- Possession of stun device under Section 13(1)(a) of the Arms and Explosives Act 1913 punishable with a fine of up to $10,000 and an imprisonment for a term of up to three years;
- Trafficking in not less than 167g and not more than 250g of methamphetamine under Section 5 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1973 punishable with an imprisonment term not exceeding 30 years or imprisonment for life, and 15 strokes of the cane;
In addition, the man is under investigation for the following offences:
- Driving under influence of drugs under Section 67(1)(a) of the Road Traffic Act 1961 punishable with a fine of not less than $2,000 and of up to $10,000, an imprisonment for a term of up to 12 months, or both;
- Driving whilst under disqualification under Section 43(4) of the Road Traffic Act 1961 punishable with a fine of up to $10,000, an imprisonment for a term of up to three years, or both; and
- Driving without a valid insurance under Section 3 of the Motor Vehicle Act 1960 punishable with a fine of up to $1,000, an imprisonment for a term of up to three months, or both.
The Central Police Division also presented the Public Spiritedness Award to the 22-year-old off-duty full-time national serviceman, Private (PTE) Mohammed Akbar Madarsa Bin Mohamed Sultan, from the Singapore Civil Defence Force for his courage and public spiritedness in assisting to detain the man with the police officers.
Commander of Central Police Division, Assistant Commissioner of Police Jeremy Ang said, “The arrested man showed a blatant disregard for the law by attacking and injuring the police officers who were performing their duties. I would like to commend the bravery of the police officers and the off-duty Singapore Civil Defence Force officer who acted with courage when confronting a man armed with a weapon, and worked bravely together to subdue and arrest him.”
The Police have zero tolerance for such brazen acts of violence against police officers and will not hesitate to take firm action against those who blatantly disregard the law. The Police would also like to remind members of the public that it is an offence to carry an offensive or scheduled weapon in a public place.
Photo of a samurai sword, two knuckledusters, a stun device, a chopper and a dagger seized ▼
Photo of the stun device seized ▼
Photo of Commander Central Police Division, Assistant Commission of Police Jeremy Ang, presenting the Public Spiritedness Award to PTE Mr Mohammed Akbar Madarsa Bin Mohamed Sultan ▼
SINGAPORE POLICE FORCE
30 October 2023 @ 2:00 PM