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Orchard Towers fatal brawl: One of the accused walks free, given conditional warning instead

SINGAPORE — One of the seven individuals charged over the high-profile Orchard Towers brawl last year, which left a 31-year-old man dead, has walked free after being given a year-long conditional warning on Thursday (Oct 15).

Chan Jia Xing (centre) with his lawyers Cory Wong (left) and Shane Yeo (right) from Invictus Law Corporation.

Chan Jia Xing (centre) with his lawyers Cory Wong (left) and Shane Yeo (right) from Invictus Law Corporation.

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  • Chan Jia Xing, 27, must remain crime-free for a year or will be liable for re-prosecution
  • He is the only individual to receive a warning; three others were handed jail terms 
  • The cases of three others, including one individual facing a murder charge, are pending

 

SINGAPORE — One of the seven individuals charged over the high-profile Orchard Towers brawl last year, which left a 31-year-old man dead, has walked free after being given a year-long conditional warning on Thursday (Oct 15).

This does not amount to a criminal conviction but it means that Chan Jia Xing, 27, must remain crime-free for 12 months or he can be prosecuted for the original crime.

The police’s Criminal Investigation Department, with the concurrence of the Attorney-General’s Chambers (AGC), issued him the warning during a pre-trial conference on Thursday.

Chan was accused of consorting with Tan Sen Yang, 28, who allegedly had a foldable Karambit — a small curved knife resembling a claw — while he was at Naughty Girl Club in Orchard Towers that morning.

In the wee hours of July 2 last year, 31-year-old Satheesh Noel Gobidass was found lying motionless in a pool of blood at the entrance of the building.

An autopsy found multiple stab and incised wounds on his body and that he died from a stab wound to the neck.

The seven accused over Satheesh’s death were initially charged with murder but six of them had their charges downcharged. 

Tan Sen Yang is the only one facing the capital charge now. His case is still pending.

Chan was represented by defence lawyers Mr Josephus Tan, Mr Cory Wong and Mr Shane Yeo from Invictus Law Corporation.

In a statement, the lawyers said: “We are grateful to the AGC for coming to the right decision to withdraw the charge against our client after our representations. 

“It’s been an arduous journey for him. He is now happily looking forward to the birth of his firstborn (son) next month instead of having to serve time in prison for this very unfortunate tragedy.”

Speaking to reporters after the hearing, Chan thanked his lawyers and said his parents have told him not to do “stupid things”.

He added that he will find a proper job in the coming weeks and will “definitely” remain crime-free “for the rest of my life”.

Consorting with a person carrying an offensive weapon carries a maximum of three years’ jail and at least six strokes of the cane.

WHAT HAPPENED 

According to court documents, Satheesh confronted the group over an earlier altercation outside the nightclub.

Secret society slogans were exchanged between the accused persons’ group and Satheesh’s group.

During the confrontation, Tan swung his knife at everyone gathered at the entrance, slashing one of the security officers on the finger and another man on the face. 

He then allegedly slashed Satheesh with the knife around the lower jaw and neck. 

A video footage of the incident later went viral on social media, showing a man collapsing near an escalator in the building after a brawl, prompting onlookers to rush forward to check on him. 

Three accused have been sentenced over the case.

Joel Tan Yun Sheng, 26, was given four weeks' jail in March after pleading guilty to voluntarily causing hurt to the victim by common intention. Another charge of consorting was taken into consideration.

Ang Da Yuan, who is also 26, was sentenced alongside Joel Tan to eight months' jail and six strokes of the cane. He pleaded guilty to voluntarily causing hurt to the victim by kicking and punching him and to consorting with Tan Sen Yang.

Natalie Siow Yu Zhen, 24, the sole woman involved, pleaded guilty last week to consorting with Tan Sen Yang and was sentenced to five months’ jail last week.

The cases of the remaining two individuals — Tan Hong Sheng, 22, and Loo Boon Chong, 27 — are pending. 

Related topics

orchard towers murder court crime

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