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Shaffiq Alkhatib
The times of the strait
December 29, 2020
A man admitted in district court on Tuesday (December 29) that he was one of the drivers involved in a car chase that ended in a fatal accident outside of Istana on December 16, 2017.
Secret society member Irsyad Sameer Abdul Rahim and his gang members had chased a person they weren’t happy with, eventually leading the car they were chasing to crash into Istana’s back door on Cavenagh Road around 6 am of that day.
Muhammad Khairulanwar Mohamed Sani, 25, and Nurul Filzah Syazwani Abdul Rahim, 21, died in the accident.
This tragedy failed to dissuade Irsyad from committing more violent acts.
Instead, he stabbed two men with a parang on March 31, 2018, before wounding a police officer a week later, on April 7, to evade arrest. Irsyad was finally caught later that day and charged in court.
The 29-year-old Singaporean, who appeared in court via video link on Tuesday, pleaded guilty to 20 counts of crimes including battery, willfully causing harm to a public servant, drug use and riot.
Twenty-four other charges, including several drug-related, will be considered during sentencing.
The court heard that Irsyad and his fellow gang members were at the Beacon Club in Marina Square on December 16, 2017, when one of them struck a man identified as Mr. Johari Sharif.
Later, the club’s security personnel told Irsyad and his gang to leave the premises. Still unhappy, the group waited outside for Mr. Johari.
Later they saw a white car driven by Khairulanwar with two passengers, Ms. Nurul and Mr. Johari.
Irsyad and his gang members got into their vehicles and chased him. Khairulanwar’s car later crashed in front of the Istana. Mr. Johari, who suffered multiple fractures, survived the accident.
(Mr. Muhammad Khairulanwar Mohamed Sani was one of the two who died in the car accident in Istana. Photos: Facebook, Shin Min Daily News)
Separately, Irsyad and three of his gang members launched a “revenge attack” against a man from a rival group on March 31, 2018.
Armed with parangs, the men went to the KTV Club Destino in Jalan Besar, the workplace of Mr. Hermanto Abdul Talib, 41, and attacked him.
Deputy Prosecutor Daphne Lim said some of the attackers then decided to “hit” the KTV rooms and Irsyad even cut off a customer’s head with his parang. Irsyad and his group fled the scene.
The DPP said the two victims were unwilling to go to a hospital in Singapore to treat their injuries “for fear of reprisals from the accused and for personal reasons.”
In an earlier statement, police said officers from the Central Police Division and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) were able to identify Irsyad.
Later, the CID carried out an operation in Tampines to catch him in the early morning of April 7 of that year. Officers jumped into action when they saw him walking toward a car.
But when Irsyad saw them, he got into his vehicle, closed the door, and sped off.
The vehicle struck a police officer who was later taken to hospital and received treatment for injuries, including multiple abrasions. The police arrested Irsyad that same day. He is expected to be sentenced on January 19 next year.
