Man used slingshot to fire ball bearings from Hougang HDB car park rooftop, damaging flat windows

SINGAPORE — When Chan Fan Kheow got interested in slingshots, he tried to perfect his skills by shooting pellets and metal ball bearings at plastic bottles on the rooftop of a multi-storey car park in Hougang.

However, he sometimes missed the bottles altogether and the projectiles struck glass windows in nearby Housing and Development Board (HDB) flats instead.

Chan was nabbed when the authorities reviewed police camera footage from housing blocks in the area and spotted him taking a slingshot out of his pocket while waiting for a lift.

On Tuesday (April 5), the 61-year-old pleaded guilty to one count of committing a rash act that endangered the personal safety of others.

Another charge of carrying an offensive weapon in public will be taken into consideration for sentencing next week. 

Singapore bans the possession and importation of slingshots.

The court heard that Chan first picked up the hobby of using slingshots in November 2019 when he noticed that e-marketplace Taobao was listing them for sale at cheap prices and bought some from the online retailer.

He then went to Guangzhou, China for a business trip where he observed slingshot competitions and decided to attend coaching sessions.

He ended up buying seven slingshots and several packs of marbles, coloured pellets, as well as metal ball bearings in various sizes.

He started off by practising hitting makeshift target boards in his own flat. Soon after, he began practising at the rooftop of the multi-storey car park at Block 933 Hougang Avenue 9.

His routine was to place several plastic bottles on the ground and ledge of the rooftop, before standing some distance away and shooting pellets and bearings at the bottles with his slingshot. He often aimed in the direction of nearby Block 923.

On Dec 25, 2019, one of the metal ball bearings struck a glass panel in the living room of a flat at Block 923. The force left a crack and a small hole in the window.

The occupant made a police report later that evening, saying a “very rounded glass shard” had dropped from his window into the house.

On Jan 12, 2020, Chan practised with his slingshot again. One of the metal ball bearings again hit a bedroom window of another flat in Block 923, leaving a hole about the size of a five-cent coin.

The occupant similarly made a police report.

The following day, the police found nine metal ball bearings scattered around the car park rooftop area. They also looked at police camera footage and saw Chan taking a slingshot out of his pocket.

He was arrested three days later. In May last year, he made full restitution of S$310 to the victims for their damaged windows.

A Health Sciences Authority report stated that Chan’s medium- and large-sized ball bearings could damage the units’ windows from where Chan was shooting from.

His ball bearings could also cause eye injuries if they had hit someone standing at an open window in the victims’ units, the report added.

The prosecution is seeking four to five weeks’ jail for Chan, arguing that he knew the risks and that he was aware he was not very skilled at using the slingshots, but continued practising with his slingshots anyway.

Chan could be jailed for up to 12 months or fined up to S$5,000, or punished with both.