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SINGAPORE – Nine more suspects, eight men and one woman, were arrested Tuesday (May 12) for riots in an apartment block in Chinatown on Sunday.
From 18 to 28 years old, they were caught after a three-day police chase by agents of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), the Police Intelligence Department and the Central Police Division.
Police had previously arrested three people at the scene of the riots on Sunday.
On Tuesday, a police spokesperson told The Straits Times that preliminary investigations found that two groups of men, one armed with parangs, had clashed after a relationship dispute over a woman.
[[nid:487718]]They are also being investigated for being members of an illegal society and rioting with deadly weapons.
The morning fight that was captured on CCTV shows the two groups fighting along a corridor on level 16 of the People’s Park Center apartments on Upper Cross Street.
The one-minute footage was widely shared on social media and in WhatsApp group chats.
Police, alerted around 3:30 a.m., arrested all three people, including 19-year-old Muhammad Shazryl Hykel, who was injured and was transferred to Singapore General Hospital.
His mother told ST on Monday that he was injured in the arms, legs, abdomen and face, but that he was stable.
“I was unable to speak to him because he was sedated and bandaged. Most of his injuries were cutting wounds,” added Ms. Samantha, who declined to give his full name.
A post-fight photograph circulating on WhatsApp group chats shows a stunned Mr. Hykel sitting next to a pool of blood.
He was previously seen on CCTV footage with some friends on Level 16 before they were attacked by gunmen.
Two of his friends fled when Mr. Hykel and another friend were kicked, beaten, and beaten with motorcycle helmets.
Mr. Hykel was also cut by at least three men wielding parangs until he collapsed.
The attackers fled, and one of them dragged a woman with them.
Another CCTV video later shows them elsewhere before they part.
Mrs. Samantha described her son as a “calm and respectful boy” who lived with his girlfriend. “I don’t know about his activities,” he said. “We won’t know what happened until he wakes up.”
Police are also investigating one of the suspects for harboring two of the arrested men.
His spokesman said: “Police want to remind the public that harboring fugitives is a serious crime that is punishable by imprisonment and a fine.”
All suspects will also be investigated for noncompliance with safe distancing measures under Regulation Covid-19 (Temporary Measures) (Control Order) 2020.
Meanwhile, the police are asking for information on the whereabouts of two people linked to the incident. They are: Muhammad Syukri Muhammad Iskandar and Muhammad Ilham Noordin.
Anyone with information can call the CID hotline: 64350000.
This article was first published in The times of the strait. Permission is required for reproduction.
