‘Abdul Rahman Majid’: Who was the mystery man who assumed a false identity, unknown to his sons?

MS Unsolved: The mystery of dead man behind the name of ‘Abdul’ Rahman Majid’

MS Unsolved is a series that hopes to raise awareness of cold cases in Singapore and generate new leads. If you have any information on the cases, reach out to MS News or the police.

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A mystery unfolded in Singapore last year when news erupted that a man with the name of Abdul Rahman Majid was not who he identified himself to be.

The man had died at home in 2022, in the rental flat he shared with his youngest son. However, the police discovered that his fingerprints did not match any record in the national database.

The revelation of the deceased’s true identity came as a shock to his sons, who had known him as “Abdul Rahman Majid” for their entire life.

In another twist, the investigation uncovered that the true Abdul Rahman Majid was still alive.

More than two years later, the identity of the man still remains shrouded in mystery.

Death of ‘Abdul Rahman Majid’ in 2022

On 5 August 2022, the man’s youngest son called the police after discovering that he had stopped breathing in the living room of their Geylang Bahru flat.

The man was pronounced dead later on the same day by a paramedic.

His body had no injuries, and authorities found no signs of struggle in his flat. The initial cause of death was found to be coronary artery disease, Channel News Asia (CNA) reported.

No passport or National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) was found in the flat. The only documents bearing his photo were an old construction site pass and a UOB Plaza pass, both showing the name “Abdul Rahman Majid”, said CNA.

At first, the police identified him as Abdul Rahman Majid, as stated in the youngest son’s birth certificate.

However, when the police took the man’s fingerprints to confirm his identity, they found no match in Singapore’s national database.

The databases of Malaysia and Indonesia also revealed no matches for his fingerprints. The Straits Times (ST) said Thai authorities did not respond to Singapore’s request to compare with its database, despite multiple reminders.

The deceased’s sons were dumbfounded by the news, as they had always known him as “Abdul Rahman Bin Majid”.

Further investigations found that the real Abdul Rahman Majid was alive and has been a long-term resident at a welfare home in Buangkok since 1994.

Aged 69 at that time, he was only able to communicate through shaking or nodding his head due to his chronic schizophrenia.

When he was presented the photo of the deceased, he shook his head, indicating that he did not recognise the man.

The police looked into the deceased’s medical history and found that “he” had received treatment at the Institute of Mental Health and Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

In fact, it was the real Abdul Rahman Majid who had visited the hospitals, so there were no clear medical reports associated to the deceased.

What is known about the mystery man

The dead man, whose age remains unknown, had a wife known as Madam Seri. He also had five sons, but the eldest was given away after his birth.

His four remaining sons were identified as Mr Farizal, Mr Iskandar, Mr Baharuddin, and Mr Razef, according to ST.

He reportedly lived with his youngest son in a rental flat in Geylang Bahru.

Following the discovery of the dead man’s false identity, his family, including his wife and sons, were summoned to an inquiry held in court.

When the photo of the real Abdul Rahman Majid was shown to the unknown man’s fourth son and wife, both indicated they had never seen him before.

Although the deceased had resided in Singapore, there was some indication from Mr Farizal that his father was originally from Malaysia.

Mr Baharuddin recalled that the man was an abusive father who had not sought medical attention at hospitals.

Mr Razef also mentioned their father had never received treatment at a hospital or clinic. Nor was he aware of any paternal relatives.

They did however remember a close friend who was from Malaysia, who addressed the man as “Kassim”.

Several other individuals, including Madam Seri’s younger sister, also addressed the mystery man as “Kassim”.

Furthermore, a cleaner in charge of the block the deceased had lived in for more than 20 years told investigating officers that the man had told him to call him “Kassim”.

Investigators were unable to unearth any more information from the deceased’s wife, who suffered from schizophrenia and could only respond by nodding or shaking her head.

Identity of the deceased remains unknown in 2024

In the end, despite more investigations, including reaching out to the relatives of the deceased’s wife, canvassing the coffeeshops that the deceased frequented, and searching the Registry of Muslim Marriages and the Registry of Marriages for a record of their marriage, nothing more was uncovered.

On 14 May, State Coroner Adam Nakhoda uploaded his findings online concluding that the identity of the deceased remained unknown.

He also said it’s unclear why the deceased chose to assume the name Abdul Rahman Majid and use his NRIC number.

The coroner said the deceased’s real name could have been Kassim, as he was also addressed by that name by many people around him.

He noted that the man would not have been able to get services such as medical treatment at clinics or hospitals without a valid name or NRIC number.

Should Thai authorities reply with a positive identification on the deceased, the case will be reopened, he added.

Online speculation has been rife, with some netizens suggesting the deceased might have swum over from a neighbouring country.

Others wondered whether his origins were akin to a science fiction novel.

While the sons had hoped to find out their father’s real name, it’s unclear when they’d get their wish. Until then, the real identity of “Abdul Rahman Majid” remains a baffling mystery.

Also read: The case of Tina Lim in Choa Chu Kang: She went to visit her grandpa but never made it there

The case of Tina Lim in Choa Chu Kang: She went to visit her grandpa but never made it there

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Featured image adapted from My Stateline, for illustration purposes only.