Man admits almost severing NParks officer’s thumb in attack with knife, walking stick with hidden blade

SINGAPORE — After illegally picking pandan leaves along the Sungei Serangoon Park Connector, Ahirrudin Al-Had Haji Arrifin was spotted without a face mask on and stopped by safe distancing enforcement officers from the National Parks Board (NParks).

He claimed that he had the right to cut pandan leaves before turning aggressive, using a walking stick with a concealed blade to stab one of the officers in the chest.

The two men then tussled. Ahirrudin retrieved another weapon, a karambit knife, from his shoe and continued attacking the officer, nearly severing the officer’s thumb in the process.

Ahirrudin, now aged 62, pleaded guilty in the High Court on Monday (March 7) to one charge each of voluntarily causing grievous hurt to the officer, possessing a scheduled weapon and breaching Covid-19 laws by failing to wear a mask over his nose and mouth.

The first charge was reduced from a more serious one of attempted murder.

Justice Tan Siong Thye adjourned sentencing to next week. The victim cannot be named due to a court gag order to protect his identity.

The incident happened on May 4, 2020 during the circuit breaker period, a semi-lockdown imposed on April 7 that year to stem the spread of the coronavirus. People were allowed to leave their homes only for purposes like buying groceries.

Ahirrudin, who has been remanded since the incident, cried and told the court he was “sad” when the charges were read to him. He had no prior criminal record.

WHAT HAPPENED

The court heard that Ahirrudin had decided to go to the park connector to pick pandan leaves for cooking.

He hid two karambit knives — small curved ones with Southeast Asian roots — under the insoles of his shoes. He intended to use them to cut the leaves.

He then cycled to the park connector with his walking stick, which had a 20cm blade concealed at the tip, and cut some leaves.

Around this time at 11am, the victim and his colleague drove through the park connector in a buggy to install SafeEntry signs along the park connector. It was drizzling at the time.

The victim then stopped the buggy near Ahirrudin upon spotting him, asking him why he had cut pandan leaves and why he did not have a mask on. Ahirrudin then questioned why he needed to wear one and said he was entitled to cut the leaves.

When they identified themselves as NParks officers and said he was not allowed to cut the leaves, he remained insistent that he had the right to do so.

They changed the topic but he grew more agitated, repeating that he did not have a mask and did not wish to wear one.

The victim then photographed him as evidence and asked for his particulars, which he refused to provide. The victim then called the police.

While waiting for police officers, the NParks officers again explained to Ahirrudin the importance of wearing a mask. In response, Ahirrudin cursed at them in Hokkien.

When the victim tried to take a video as evidence, Ahirrudin saw red and retrieved his walking stick, stabbing the left side of the victim’s chest.

Shocked to see the blade partially embedded in his chest, the victim tried to pull it out but Ahirrudin climbed into the buggy and forcefully pushed it into the victim’s chest.

The victim's colleague screamed for help and tried to pull Ahirrudin away. The two men struggled and fell out onto a grass patch, with Ahirrudin dropping the walking stick.

He then retrieved one of the karambit knives out of his shoe and slashed the victim repeatedly, almost severing his thumb. The victim’s colleague picked up Ahirrudin's walking stick and struck him with the blunt wooden end several times but Ahirrudin continued biting the victim’s right hand.

He eventually let go and dropped the karambit knife after a passerby intervened. The victim managed to get up and fled with his colleague, calling the police to report what had just happened.

Ahirrudin cycled home, washed up at the void deck of his Hougang block and hid the walking stick in a concrete compartment before returning home. He was arrested at about 1.15pm.

The victim was taken to Changi General Hospital and later transferred to Singapore General Hospital, where he underwent surgery for his injuries that included his chest stab wound. He was hospitalised for four days.

PROSECUTION SEEKING 12 TO 15 YEARS’ JAIL

The prosecution pressed for 12 to 15 years’ jail, calling it a “really egregious and aggravated case”.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Senthilkumaran Sabapathy noted the extent of the victim’s injuries. He suffered permanent impairment to both hands and still feels pain in his fingers, while his chest wound — to the left and close to his heart — could have “easily resulted in death”, the prosecutor added.

He required months of therapy with a hand specialist to restore motion to his hands. His left hand has a grip strength of 70 per cent in comparison to his right.

The victim also still feels uneasy approaching members of the public, and feels afraid when he sees a knife even within the confines of his home, DPP Sabapathy said.

The prosecutor added: “Covid-19 was still novel and we were very reliant on safe distancing officers to protect us by enforcing the rules. What his actions did undermined that entire exercise.

“It was an incident that affected the country as a whole and our fight against Covid-19 by undermining safety and confidence in safe distancing officers.”

In mitigation, Ahirrudin’s lawyer Rajan Supramaniam said that his client has “expressed profound remorse and regret” and has been praying for the victim’s quick recovery and good health.

Ahirrudin acted in the heat of the moment and is not an aggressive person by nature, the defence added, stressing that he had fully cooperated with the police and did not resist arrest. “He fled the scene out of panic and he was confused as to what to do,” Mr Supramaniam added.

Those convicted of voluntarily causing grievous hurt by a dangerous weapon or means can be jailed for life or up to 15 years. They can also be caned.