Beach Road chopper attack: Man to be charged with attempted murder; victim believed to be his wife
Footage of the incident showed the man wielding a chopper at 75 Beach Road on Apr 14, 2022.
SINGAPORE: A 46-year-old man arrested after he allegedly attacked a woman in the Beach Road area on Thursday (Apr 14) will be charged with attempted murder, said the Singapore Police Force (SPF).
The victim, a 41-year-old woman, is believed to be his wife, the police added.
He will be charged in court on Saturday. If found guilty, he faces life imprisonment, a jail term of up to 20 years and a fine, or both.
The police said they responded to the case at 75 Beach Road at about 5.30pm.
Preliminary investigations revealed that the man allegedly attacked the woman with a chopper. Before authorities arrived, he is believed to have slit his own wrists.
“Several members of the public had intervened to help the victim and prevent the man from causing further harm to the victim. Police officers arrived at the scene, located the armed man in the vicinity and deployed Taser to subdue him,” SPF added.
The man was arrested and both he and the victim were conscious when taken to hospital.
The chopper was seized and police investigations are ongoing.
Footage of the incident showed a man clad in black apparently slashing the woman several times as she lay on the road behind a parked car. Building signage identified the location as next to Zhong Hua Steamboat and Hotel Calmo Bugis near Liang Seah Street.
Members of the public, some of whom appeared to be staff members from a nearby eatery, were seen attempting to stop the man by throwing objects such as chairs and dustbins at him.
The man’s hands were covered in blood and he held onto the weapon as he briefly attempted to engage with those who tried to intervene, before attempting to flee. The woman, who later managed to sit up, was seen with blood on her head, arms and legs.
A CNA reporter saw at least 10 police cars at Liang Seah Street at about 6pm, as well as several ambulances. The hotpot restaurant was also cordoned off.
“The police would like to commend the members of the public who had intervened to prevent the man from causing further harm to the woman,” said Assistant Commissioner of Police, Jeremy Ang.
The police said they are aware of videos of the incident making their rounds online. They urged members of the public to avoid circulating the videos and speculating on the case.
