After hearing shouts, neighbour is greeted by grisly scene; woman to be charged with murder

He was jolted out of bed in the wee hours of the morning by shouts coming from the flat next door. He thought it was only a quarrel and went back to sleep.

He woke up hours later and heard quite a bit of activity outside.

When the 73-year-old opened his front door, he was stunned to see police officers at the scene and blood along the corridor. His neighbour's flat was also cordoned off.

Speaking to The New Paper yesterday, the retired deliveryman, who wanted to be known only as Mr Ho, said: "I woke up at 8am and when I opened the door, I saw streaks of blood covering the corridor.

"Police officers were also at the scene. I had no idea what had happened."

A 39-year-old woman was arrested for suspected involvement in the murder of a 51-year-old man at the housing unit in Ang Mo Kio.

In a statement, the police said they were alerted to a dispute at a residential unit at Block 562 Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3 at about 12.55am yesterday.

"Upon arrival at the scene, officers found a man and a woman, both with multiple wounds, outside the residential unit," the police said.

The woman and the man were both conscious when taken to hospital, but he later died from his injuries.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the man and woman knew each other.

The woman was hospitalised and will be charged with murder today, the police said.

PUNGGOL CASE

The offence carries the death penalty and police investigations are ongoing.

The incident occurred hours after another suspected murder case in Punggol on Wednesday evening. The police said they arrested a 43-year-old man for suspected involvement in the death of another man, 46.

Around 3pm on Wednesday, the police were alerted to a stabbing incident at a housing unit in Sumang Walk.

Officers found the 46-year-old man with multiple wounds lying motionless outside the unit.

He was later pronounced dead.

The 43-year-old will also be charged with murder today.

When TNP visited the scene in Ang Mo Kio yesterday, the corridor had been cleaned and the police cordon removed.

Mr Ho and his wife, 66, have been living there for 40 years and he said the man moved in about 10 years ago with his first wife, who was from Hong Kong.

"I used to chat with him at times. He had always been quite a friendly guy," he said.

Mr Ho said the couple had a daughter together before they got a divorce, and the man got married again, this time to a Vietnamese woman. He also had a daughter with her, believed to be about three years old now.

Mr Ho said the man and his Vietnamese wife divorced about three years ago.

He then got together with another Vietnamese woman. Mr Ho is unsure if they got married and if the alleged murder suspect is his second wife or current partner.

A canteen vendor who lives two units away and wanted to be known only as Madam Ong, 52, said she did not hear any commotion during the night.

"I usually sleep at around 10pm. Everything seemed fine last night so it was a shock when I woke up in the morning and saw police officers outside my flat, and all the blood.

"You think such things happen only somewhere else. I never thought it would take place so close to our home," said Madam Ong, who lives with her teenage daughter.

A polytechnic student who lives with his parents four units away and wanted to be known only as Mr J. Ng, said he was dozing off when he heard shouts coming from the void deck downstairs.

"I could not make out what they were saying but it sounded like an intense argument. After a while, they came upstairs and continued quarrelling," said the 18-year-old.

Mr Ho said the incident was a tragedy.

"It is a pity as I always thought the couple was getting along. Now, just because of a quarrel, a life is lost."