Police officer, 29, found with gunshot wound on Bayfront Avenue believed to have shot air twice before shooting himself

SINGAPORE — A 29-year-old police officer was found with a gunshot wound at 1 Bayfront Avenue and was later pronounced dead on Monday (Sept 19). He was believed to have shot into the air twice before firing a third shot at himself.

On Monday, the police said that the officer was from the Central Police Division and a service pistol was found at the scene and seized.

In an updated statement later in the day, the police said that the officer — who had joined the force in September 2014 — had reported for duty in the morning and had drawn his service pistol from the armoury before heading to a boardwalk along 1 Bayfront Avenue.

“At 9.44am, the police were alerted to three gunshots heard along 1 Bayfront Avenue.

“The officer was later found with a gunshot wound to his head. He was believed to have fired two shots into the air, before firing the third shot to the right side of his head."

The officer was taken unconscious to the hospital, where he was then pronounced dead.

No other person was reported to be injured, and the case has been classified as unnatural death.

Investigations are ongoing and based on preliminary investigations, the police do not suspect any foul play.

“Based also on preliminary checks, he had not sought help from his unit, supervisors or counsellors,” the police said.

They added that their officers undergo training by the Police Psychological Services Department on how to identify possible signs and symptoms of distress and learn basic coping skills.

“Officers are also informed of the resources they can access should they need assistance in coping with their distress.” 

This includes external resources as well as internal resources such as the Police Psychological Services Department, para-counsellors who are trained to help identify distressed officers and render necessary support, and its 24/7 helpline service.

“Officers can also go for face-to-face counselling with in-house psychologists or external counselling service providers,” the police added.

“At the same time, best practices on safeguarding mental health and well-being, and other relevant resources, are shared regularly with officers via internal communications channels. 

“The police would like to appeal to members of the public not to circulate videos or images of the deceased out of respect for his family.”