NSF trainee who said he was depressed found dead

SINGAPORE — A full-time national serviceman from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) was found dead early Friday (Feb 19) at a training institute at Jalan Bahar.

Mr Edwin Ong Koon Chwee, 21, had enlisted in the SCDF on Tuesday and was undergoing training at the National Service Training Institute, the SCDF said in a Facebook post. 

The training institute’s director, Colonel Kadir Maideen, had spoken to Mr Ong’s family, and reiterated the SCDF’s support for them during this time of bereavement. The family has requested for privacy, the SCDF added.

Earlier on Friday, Mr Ong had posted an entry on his Facebook, where he talked about “my slight depression” and the pressures he faced, among other things. He also said that his family was facing financial difficulties and he was not able to do much to help them. In the post, Mr Ong described himself as the youngest in the family, with two older brothers and an elder sister.

The police said on Friday that they had received a call requesting for assistance at 5.24am at the training institute. Upon arrival, officers found Mr Ong’s motionless body, and he was pronounced dead by paramedics at the scene.

The police are investigating the unnatural death.