A persistent foul odour and a stack of uncollected newspapers outside a flat led to the discovery of an elderly man’s body in Bukit Batok.
The incident took place at around 10am on Sunday (5 July) at a maisonette-style HDB unit along Bukit Batok Street 21.
Source: Google Maps, for illustration purposes only
According to Shin Min Daily News, a resident in the same block said an elderly man had been living in the unit.
The man’s next-door neighbour reportedly began noticing a foul smell on Saturday (4 July) and suspected that something was amiss.
The resident, whose unit was farther away, said she only caught the smell when the wind blew in her direction.
“We discussed it and decided to check again the next day before deciding whether to call the police,” she said.
By Sunday morning, the stench had reportedly grown stronger.
When neighbours went to the man’s unit, they noticed that the newspapers he had subscribed to had not been collected.
Source: Mike van Schoonderwalt on Pexels, for illustration purposes only
The stack included newspapers dating back to 21 June, which made them feel that something was not right.
“Sometimes, neighbours may be overseas and not collect their newspapers. But when we saw such a big stack, we felt something was wrong and quickly called the police,” the neighbour said.
According to neighbours, police officers arrived within 10 minutes of receiving the report and began investigations.
When Shin Min Daily News arrived at the scene, a police car and a Crime Scene Investigation vehicle were parked at the foot of the block.
At least three police officers were stationed outside the unit, while several CSI officers were seen gathering evidence inside.
A foul smell lingered at the scene, and mosquito coils had been placed outside the door, believed to have been used to mask the odour.
The reporter also observed that the stack of newspapers outside the unit consisted of more than 10 copies of The Straits Times.
After several hours of investigations, a hearse arrived at around 2pm.
A coroner and police officers later carried the body away.
A neighbour told Shin Min Daily News that the elderly man was quiet and rarely interacted with others, though he would occasionally greet him.
Residents also shared that the man had been living alone for around 30 years and did not appear to have many relatives.
One resident said a relative, believed to be his elder sister, used to visit and help take care of his unit, but had not been seen for some time.
Also read: Elderly man with dementia found dead in Marina East, had gone missing for 2 days
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Featured image adapted from Billion Photos on Canva, for illustration purposes only.