Beach Road murder: Man who allegedly killed business partner remanded for psychiatric evaluation

SINGAPORE — A 50-year-old man who fled to Malaysia after allegedly murdering his 27-year-old business partner will be remanded for psychiatric observation.

A district court granted the application by a police prosecutor for Caleb Joshua Chai Shanmugam on Friday (Dec 9) after he told the court that Chai, who was returned to Singapore by Malaysian police, was no longer needed in custody for investigations.

During the short hearing, Chai’s lawyer, Ms Sophia Clare Ng, also sought permission to speak to her client and for Chai to talk to his wife.

In response, the police prosecutor told the lawyer from Eugene Thuraisingam LLP to seek permission from the Deputy Public Prosecutor assigned to the case.

Chai, who appeared via video link, also briefly addressed the court and said that his wife had made the police report against him regarding “whatever I had done”.

Chai is scheduled to return to court on Dec 30.

He was first charged with the murder of Ang Qi Ying on Nov 18.

TODAY previously reported that Chai allegedly murdered the woman on Nov 9 at about 7pm in a shop along Beach Road.

Official records showed that Chai and Ang were both directors at Smart Click Services, a renovation firm they started in October last year.

The police said in a statement on Nov 16 that they were first alerted to a case of unnatural death on Nov 13.

Upon arrival, police officers found the woman's body within the premises of the shop and paramedics pronounced her dead at the scene.

Chai left for Malaysia in the morning of Nov 10 and the Singapore police sought the assistance of the Royal Malaysia Police to locate him.

He was eventually arrested in Johor Bahru on Nov 16 by the Malaysian police and handed over to the Singapore police on the same day.

If convicted of murder, he could be given the death penalty.