COI praises officer who confronted rioters for bravery

SINGAPORE — Unlike the police officers who had taken the stand before him, Sergeant Fadli Shaifuddin, 27, testified during the Committee of Inquiry (COI) hearing yesterday that he confronted the rioters in Little India on Dec 8 — on three occasions, the Traffic Police officer charged at them while wielding his baton, forcing the rioters to back off. He only stopped charging at them under instructions by his team leader, who was concerned about his safety.

Sgt Fadli’s actions were praised by the COI, with former Police Commissioner Tee Tua Ba saying: “What you did was a very brave act. You wanted to assert control. We heard testimony from many police officers. They all hesitated to (take) action because if they went forward, they would be overwhelmed and (have) their gun taken away and their lives would be at stake.”

Before Sgt Fadli gave his testimony, 14 other police officers had taken the stand, including 10 who were at the scene of the riot.

Sgt Fadli said on the first occasion, he charged at more than 50 rioters who were throwing projectiles at the junction of Kerbau Road and Race Course Road because he “wanted them to know that the police were still in control”. “I also wanted to institute some law and order before the situation got more out of hand,” said Sgt Fadli, who has been in service for three and a half years.

He said he charged at the rioters, while maintaining eye contact with them to show that he “meant business”. His actions were partly captured by CCTV camera and the footage was shown during the hearing.

After he managed to disperse the first group of rioters who retreated into Little India MRT Station, he returned to controlling traffic at the junction of Buffalo Road and Race Course Road. “I stood my ground and continued moving with my baton drawn ... it worked as the rioters would retreat when I neared them,” he said. “However, I realised that they continued damaging the vehicles and hurling projectiles when I pulled back and returned to my original position. I could not continue confronting them as I was grossly outnumbered.”

Sgt Fadli did confront the rioters again after he was “agitated” by a projectile that struck his right thigh.

He added that he charged at the rioters for a third time. While doing so, his left shin was hit by projectiles. After that, he was instructed by his team leader, Station Inspector Adil Lawi, not to charge at the rioters again.

The station inspector, who took the stand before Sgt Fadli, told the inquiry he was also worried that the sergeant’s revolver would be snatched by the rioters. Sgt Fadli said his team leader was also concerned that he could hurt innocent bystanders. He would have continued charging if he was not stopped by his team leader, he said.