Man dies in attack at Clarke Quay, nine suspects arrested
WATCH: Video of an attack in a car park at Clarke Quay on Sunday (16 April) posted by netizen Summer Lee.
A 31-year-old man has died after an incident of rioting at Clarke Quay last Sunday.
In a statement on Thursday (20 April), the police said they received a call for help at 3E River Valley Road on 16 April 2017 at about 4.13am. A man was conveyed to the Singapore General Hospital (SGH) and was subsequently pronounced dead at SGH on Wednesday at about 9.58am.
Following investigations, police arrested nine suspects aged between 20 and 30.
Three of them have been charged with the offence of rioting with deadly weapon, which carries a jail term of up to 10 years and shall also be liable to be caning. Three more suspects will be charged on Friday for the same offence.
Investigations against the remaining three suspects are still ongoing.
The arrests come after a video was posted online recently of an attack happening in a multi-storey car park at Clarke Quay. In the video, a man was seen lying on the floor while he was kicked on his head and back by a man wearing bermuda shorts. When the victim got up, he was confronted in an aggressive manner by the attacker and a group of men.
“Shawn” (not his real name) was walking with several friends towards his car in the car park at 4am on Sunday when he witnessed the attack.
Speaking with Yahoo Singapore on Wednesday, Shawn said he was on the second level of the car park when he heard a commotion and saw a man lying on the floor, surrounded by a group of men.
Concerned that the man might be hurt, one of Shawn’s friends rushed to help him, only to be assaulted by someone from the group.
Shawn said he went to help his friend but was hit with a metal rod. After Shawn was pushed to the floor, at least 12 men from the group rained kicks and punches all over his body.
The 29-year-old businessman said that the assault left him with injuries to his head and back. “I just wanted to help my friend and the other man as it is not right for the group to hit them. That’s too much,” he added.
According to Shawn, the attack lasted between 10 and 15 minutes and ended when the assailants drove off in four cars. Shawn was able to take pictures of the registration plates of three of the cars.
The police and an ambulance arrived about 15 minutes later and the three injured men were rushed to Singapore General Hospital.
Shawn, who was warded in hospital for a day, said he had no regrets for trying to stop the attack. “I’ll regret more if I had not stepped forward to help,” he added.
According to “Melissa”, who was with Shawn in the car park, she also saw the group of assailants punching a man on his head. “The man fell backwards and stopped moving,” she said.
The businesswoman also witnessed the attacks on Shawn and their mutual friend.
