Man, 80, jailed for trying to kill sister at sibling's wake
Enraged that his estranged younger sister refused to give him any pocket money, a 77-year-old unemployed man attacked her with a chopper – while attending the wake of another sister.
Now 80 and in a wheelchair, Chan Tuck Sing was jailed for five years on Monday (8 October), having earlier pleaded guilty to one count of attempted culpable homicide for using a chopper to slash Chan Sow Lin, now 71, on her head, face and hands in 2016.
Accused took pocket money from late sister
The assault was spurred by the death of his younger sister, Chan Sow Boey, the High Court heard.
Tuck Sing, who is the second eldest of a family of seven siblings, lived alone as he was estranged from his remaining four siblings, including Sow Lin, the second youngest sibling whom he hardly saw in the 44 years before the crime.
Having been unemployed for about 15 years before the offence, Tuck Sing received financial support each month from his mother until she passed away in 2006. As the mother had given $22,000 to Sow Boey for the siblings’ sustenance before dying, Sow Boey gave Tuck Sing an allowance of $510 every month until her death.
On 6 April 2016, Tuck Sing visited Sow Boey at her Jurong West flat but could not enter it as it was locked from the inside. After receiving no response, Tuck Sing called Sow Lin, who contacted the Singapore Civil Defence Force for help. Officers broke into the unit and found that Sow Boey had died in her home.
A wake was held at a nearby void deck and Tuck Sing became worried that his pocket money would be cut off with the death of his sister.
On the second day of the wake, Tuck Sing told Sow Lin about the pocket money he had been getting from Sow Boey and asked if she would similarly give him $510 a month. She rejected his request, leaving Tuck Sing anxious about his financial situation.
That night, Tuck Sing formed a plan to kill Sow Lin, the court heard.
Accused turned himself in
The next day, he took a chopper from Sow Boey’s flat before attending the wake. Tuck Sing saw Sow Lin there with her son along with one of Sow Boey’s ex-colleagues, Liew Kim Mei. As he feared the son would intervene, Tuck Sing sent him away to buy coffee.
Shortly after, Tuck Sing stood behind Sow Lin, placed the chopper against her neck and forced her to stand before slashing her on her face and hands. Liew, who was beside Sow Lin, ran to a nearby coffee shop and called the police.
Sow Lin fell to the ground after Tuck Sing slashed her four to five times. She grabbed a plastic chair to block the blows, but he pulled the chair away and continued to slash at her multiple times until he heard a passerby shouting at him.
Tuck Sing dropped the chopper and went to a petrol kiosk to wash the blood from his face and hands. He then took a bus to Clementi Police Station, where he confessed to his crime.
The confession was captured on policemen’s body-worn cameras. Tuck Sing was then arrested.
Sow Lin suffered multiple deep cuts on her face, and cuts and fractures on her hands. She was hospitalised for nine days and given another six days of hospitalisation leave.
A psychiatrist diagnosed Tuck Sing as having adjustment disorder at the time of the crime, which affected his judgement.
‘Cold-blooded attempt’
Deputy Public Prosecutor Wong Kok Weng called for six to seven years’ jail, saying Tuck Sing had “cold-bloodedly attempted to kill his younger sister”.
Pro bono lawyer Michael Chia asked for not more than three years’ jail, citing Tuck Sing’s age and poor health. He said Tuck Sing had been forced to stop working at least a decade ago due to leg ailments.
He relied mainly on Sow Boey, his closest sibling, for financial support and had been denied a monthly allowance by the victim following Sow Boey’s death.
Tuck Sing’s sentence was backdated to 9 April 2016. For his actions, he could have been jailed for up to 15 years and fined.
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