Punggol Murder Suspect Reportedly Went Home Straight After Incident
A 38-year-old man was stabbed earlier this week when he was running in Punggol. He was rushed to a hospital but tragically passed away shortly after.
Punggol Jogger Stabbed 2 Streets Away From Home, Family Mourns His Sudden Passing
On Sunday (17 May) morning, 20-year-old Surajsrikan Diwakar Mani Tripathi was charged in connection to the stabbing incident.
Later that day, Lianhe Zaobao published an interview with the suspect’s mother, who claimed that her son suffers from mental illness.
Punggol murder suspect reportedly suffers from mental illness
In the interview with Lianhe Zaobao, the suspect’s mother said that her son suffers from “mental problems”, but did not elaborate any further.
According to the report, the 20-year-old said he wanted to go for a run that night and brought along a knife with him.
He reportedly lives near the scene and went home straight after the incident.
He mostly stayed home throughout the subsequent days and was arrested on Saturday (16 May) morning.
One neighbour told Lianhe Zaobao that while the 20-year-old’s family usually keeps their house door open, the unit has been silent of late.
38-year-old man fatally stabbed on 10 May while jogging
Last Sunday (10 May) at around 11pm, 38-year-old Tay Rui Hao was fatally stabbed in Punggol Field while he was out running.
Mr Tay was seen struggling to a bus stop but collapsed on a nearby grass patch — a few blocks away from where he stayed.
He was rushed to Sengkang General Hospital but succumbed to his injuries shortly after.
Mr Tay’s family was “shocked” by the accident and his father even described his son’s passing as “very unjustified”.
Punggol murder suspect charged via video call
The police arrested the 20-year-old suspect on Saturday (16 May) morning at around 2.45am.
He attended court today (17 May) via a video call and was charged for murder.
As of yesterday, the police is currently seeking a court order for the suspect to be remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for psychiatric evaluation.
He will return to court on 5 Jun and faces the death penalty if found guilty.
We offer our condolences to the victim’s family
MS News would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to friends and family members of the deceased.
If the suspect is indeed found to be suffering from mental illnesses, we hope he would be given the necessary treatment.
If you or your loved ones are experiencing stress or any other mental issues, here are some hotlines to call for emotional support:
- Samaritans of Singapore — 1800-221-4444
- IMH’s Mental Health Helpline — 6389-2222
- National Care Hotline — Â 1800-202-6868
- Silver Ribbon Singapore — 6385-3714
The ‘Circuit Breaker’ can be mentally straining for some of us, hence we’ll have to be more vigilant than ever to care for our loved ones during these trying times.
Featured image adapted from Google Maps.
