How the wit of 10 including 2 Malaysians prevented a potential daylight murder

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The ten who received Public Spiritedness Awards from the Singapore Police Force for having responded quickly to a situation that could have ended up with one life lost. Photo courtesy of Singapore Police Force Facebook account.

SINGAPORE, April 18 – Ten people including two Malaysians were commended by the Singapore Police Force during a ceremony at the Central Police Division here today for their public spirit and bravery for having jointly prevented a 46-year old man from the possibility of hurting a woman fatally in a incident recently.

A video purportedly on the said incident meanwhile has gone viral, showing how a group of people were shouting and throwing objects at a man, to distract him and stop him as he attempted to slash the neck of a woman, seen to be already bleeding from a cut and desperately fending herself.

In a press statement today, the SPF related how on the evening of April 14, the Police had responded to a case of assault with a chopper at 75 Beach Road.

“Upon arrival, officers found the woman with slash wounds at scene. Several members of the public had intervened to help the woman by shouting and throwing objects at the man and distracting him, in their attempts to mitigate further harm caused against the woman.

“When police officers arrived, a few members of the public directed the Police to the whereabouts of the man. Police officers located the man and deployed the Taser to subdue him. Both the 41-year-old woman and the 46-year-old man were conveyed conscious to the hospital.”

The SPF said the man was charged in court on 16 April 2022 with attempted murder under Section 307 of the Penal Code.

According to the police, Leonard Shi and Jackie Tee heard the call for help at the back alley of Liang Seah Street. They attempted to disorientate the man by shouting at him and throwing anything they could find, to prevent the man from causing more harm to the woman.

At another nearby restaurant, five other men including Malaysians Lim Chee Kong and Lim Chee Wei as well as Lei Hai Qiu, Wei Chen Xiang, Lin Yong Ping, heard the call for help as well and started to pick up plastic chairs, bins, and signposts, and threw the items at the man to distract him.

Another two men Pan Xiao Shuo and Zhang Dai, who were servicing an air-conditioning unit, grabbed a ladder from their lorry parked nearby, with the intention to chase the man away and to defend themselves against the man, while the man was along Liang Seah Street.

To Lee Kwee, a waitress at a steamboat restaurant nearby, meanwhile ran to seek help from staff of a nearby hotel, who then alerted the Police to the incident.

Jackie Tee, who was a manager of a nearby barbeque restaurant, took a plastic storage box and threw it at the man to distract him and prevent him from inflicting more harm to the helpless woman, while the man was allegedly attacking the woman along Liang Seah Street.

Assistant Commissioner of Police Jeremy Ang Boon Sheng, Commander of Central Police Division said, “We are pleased to present the Public Spiritedness Awards to the 10 selfless individuals for rendering their assistance to a woman of an armed assault. Their actions, which included shouting and throwing objects at the man to distract and disorientate him, helped to mitigate further harm caused towards the woman. Even though they were fully aware that the man was armed, their extraordinary bravery and quick-thinking in stepping forward, deserves our recognition and commendation.”