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Cops break into Sembawang Drive flat in dramatic end to 17-hour standoff 

SINGAPORE — A dramatic overnight standoff between police negotiators and a 39-year-old man who locked himself in a flat with his girlfriend’s two-year-old son ended after 17 hours, when officers stormed into the unit at noon on Wednesday (Sept 28) to rescue the unharmed toddler.

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SINGAPORE — A dramatic overnight standoff between police negotiators and a 39-year-old man who locked himself in a flat with his girlfriend’s two-year-old son ended after 17 hours, when officers stormed into the unit at noon on Wednesday (Sept 28) to rescue the unharmed toddler.

The man, who was arrested, is being investigated for the offence of wrongful confinement, which can be punished with up to one year in jail, a fine not exceeding S$3,000, or both. He is also suspected of possessing a weapon and of committing drug-related offences.

The boy has been placed in “safe care” temporarily, said a spokesperson from the Ministry of Social and Family Development. 

“We will work with the family and professionals in ensuring his safety and well-being.”

The child’s mother has also been arrested for drug-related offences.

The tense situation in the neighbourhood of rental flats started on Tuesday evening after the man had a dispute with the boy’s family members and held the toddler in the unit. Police said they got a call requesting for assistance at Block 462 Sembawang Drive at 6.44pm and when officers arrived, they found that the man refused to open the door.

 

As officers from Ang Mo Kio Police Division, Crisis Negotiation Unit and Special Operations Command (SOC) headed to the scene to manage the situation, crowds of residents started to gather at the foot of an opposite block — with some staying into the night — to keep tabs on developments.

At about noon, SOC officers smashed through the window panes to rescue the toddler. They also cut the locked gate to arrest the man.

According to the area’s Member of Parliament, Dr Lim Wee Kiak, the boy is the youngest of four children and his mother is a widow. The other three children are living with their grandmother in Woodlands, Dr Lim added.

It is unclear if the man stays in the Sembawang flat but residents there said he has been seen with the woman.

Ms Rosli, 36, said her 57-year-old mother saw the couple on Tuesday at around noon and felt that they seemed “normal”. At about 5pm, she heard two women shouting through a window, asking for the crying boy to be released. The women said the boy had not gone to school for a few days, and his teacher had called.

The women left around 9pm, she said.

Several residents of the block said that because people move in and out of the rental units there, they generally did not fraternise with their neighbours.

Mdm Nurul Firdaus, 22, who does not know the family personally, said the households in the block were “mostly not that open” and she typically does not go beyond greeting her neighbours.

“We ... do our own things,” said the account assistant, who lives on the 18th storey of the block.

A male resident, who declined to be named, added: “Generally, we get disturbances here. I don’t know the people but you can hear shouting sometimes. It is normal here.”

A resident who only wanted to be known as Mrs Diana also said that because of how close the blocks and flats were, it was common to hear screaming and crying “no matter what time it is.”

Neighbours of the arrested pair gave contrasting pictures of their relationship.

According to Madam Aliyah, who lives a floor above, the two were “friendly and looked like a really loving couple, to each other and to the child”.

The 55-year-old vegetable packer added that the woman had once approached her politely at the market asking for a recipe for a shrimp dish. Since then, Mdm Aliyah would exchange greetings with the pair.

Housewife Mdm Zaiton, 55, who lives on the fifth floor, recalled seeing the couple having a dispute at the lift landing early this year. She said she deliberately rode her personal mobility device to the lobby to break the situation up.

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