A 27-year-old Bangladeshi worker is suspected of the murder. (AFP file photo)
When residents of a Woodlands HDB block of flats found their tap water yellowish and unnaturally foamy on Monday morning, they knew something was wrong.
But never would they have imagined the cause: a dead woman's body had been floating in one of the eight water storage tanks atop their 15-storey block.
The dead woman was identified to be a 30-year-old Indonesian maid who worked in the block of flats. She was found in one of the eight water tanks atop Block 686B at Woodlands Drive 73.
A 27-year-old Bangladeshi maintenance worker, believed to have been in an intimate relationship with her, has been arrested in connection with her death.
Police said they received a call at about 10am regarding a body in a water tank at the block. The call was made by a colleague of the Bangladeshi suspect.
The dead maid was found in a 2m-deep tank, and worked for a family on the sixth floor. She was found dressed in a T-shirt and bermudas, and had cuts on her back.
The police did not reveal her name.
As an employee of Sergent Services Pte Ltd, which offers conservancy services, the suspect had access to the roof as a maintenance worker.
Onlookers said he appeared to have cuts on his leg and was limping when the policemen took him away at 10.40am.
Some residents said they heard screams and a couple arguing loudly in the morning, but only thought of it as a domestic problem.
CLEAN-UP OPERATION
A PUB spokesman said the town council stopped water supply from all eight rooftop tanks as soon as they were informed about the gruesome discovery, and provided residents with alternate sources of water at the void deck.
PUB also provided water bags and sent a water tanker to the area.
"The town council is currently flushing/washing/sterilising the tanks and distribution pipes. Water supply is expected to be restored by midnight," said the spokesman.
Soon Min Sin, general manager of the Sembawang Town Council, said all eight tanks, which serve 124 of the 149 units of the block of four- and five-room flats, had to be flushed and sterilised as they were connected.
Retiree Choi Ah Moi, 69, who lives on the 11th storey, told The Straits Times that she first noticed something was amiss when the tap water was bubbly.
After she heard news of the dead body, she said, "This is so disgusting. My whole family finished a big pot of green bean soup I cooked this morning."
Another resident, 33-year-old housewife Ally Lee, said her maid used the water to cook noodles for her seven-year-old daughter at 7.30am.
"I think I'm going to take my daughter to the doctor," she said.
Housewife Yasmin Abdul, 35, who threw away a pot of freshly-made soup after she heard about the body, was one of the residents filling up pails at the void deck.
She said, "I am very upset and angry that the town council did not explain properly what had happened.
"This is just too scary," she added.
Soon, responding to worries of lack of information provided by the town council, said, "Our priority was to protect the residents and cut off the water supply for their safety."
Newly elected MP for Sembawang GRC, Vikram Nair, visited residents on Monday and assured them. "Once we get the full picture, we will put in measures to prevent it from happening again," he said.
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