36-Year-Old Police Officer Found Motionless At Yishun Block Had Complained Of Work Challenges
On Friday (21 July) afternoon, a police officer was found motionless at the foot of an HDB block in Yishun.
Unfortunately, he subsequently passed away from his injuries, said the Singapore Police Force (SPF).
Source: Singapore Police Force on Facebook
They are currently investigating the incident.
Police officer found motionless at Yishun Block
In a Facebook post on Friday (21 July), the SPF said they received a call for assistance at 4.55pm that day.
This was because a 36-year-old man was found lying motionless at the foot of Block 393 Yishun Avenue 6.
Source: Google Maps
The man was identified as a police officer.
Case classified as unnatural death
The officer was sent to hospital unconscious, and passed away there.
The SPF doesn’t suspect foul play based on preliminary investigations.
However, they have classified the case as an unnatural death.
Investigations into the case are currently ongoing.
Police officer found at Yishun block faced ‘challenges at work’
The SPF also said that they were aware that the officer faced “challenges at work”.
These were raised in a Facebook post that he wrote before his death.
They had extended assistance to him with regard to these challenges, they added.
The SPF pledged to investigate all the issues he raised, adding,
We are all deeply saddened by the passing of a colleague. We extend our deepest condolences to the family of the officer and are assisting the family in their time of grief.
Shanmugam promises to get to the bottom of incident
In a Facebook post that same night, Law and Home Affairs Minister K Shanmugam identified the deceased as Mr Uvaraja S/O Gopal.
Source: K Shanmugam Sc on Facebook
He also elaborated on the content of the police officer’s post, saying that he alleged to have experienced racial discrimination during his time in the SPF.
His allegations are “serious”, the minister said, promising to “get to the bottom of it”. To that end, he has asked SPF to investigate the matter thoroughly.
Mr Shamugam added that SPF has a non-discrimination policy, with all officers entitled to fair treatment.
He conveyed his deepest condolences to the family.
Police officer complained of toxic work culture
Mr Uvaraja’s Facebook post has since been taken down, but screenshots have made their way across the Internet.
According to the post, he said he first joined the police in 2005 while serving his national service and subsequently joined as a regular.
When he started out in front-line policing, which involved plainclothes operations, he was passionate about his work.
However, the workplace culture turned “toxic” when he was posted to a Neighbourhood Police Centre (NPC), he said.
He claimed he was “bullied a lot of times”, including allegedly being called “keleng kia” (a Hokkien slur used against an Indian person), “black” and “smelly”.
As he fought back against this, people were “offended”, he said.
Claimed to have been boycotted
As a result, Mr Uvaraja was “stuck” in his rank while pulling 16-hour shifts, he alleged.
He also claimed he was labelled as “not a team player” though he did all the work of his team and watched those who “do nothing” get their ranks.
The officer added that his posting out was blocked in 2019, and an inspector even shredded his leave forms and records on live streaming.
Despite all this, he “trusted in the process” and stayed calm to perform his duties throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, performing to the best of his ability, he maintained.
However, when he invited his team to his wedding, nobody showed up, having “boycotted” him, he added.
Claimed he found officers vaping
In 2021, Mr Uvaraja allegedly discovered officers vaping in the office.
When he reported this to management, it was allegedly “covered up”, he said.
He was eventually posted to another NPC, but was allegedly “pushed around” and treated as an “outcast”, he added.
This year, a supervisor “repeatedly humiliated” him and “shouted” at him, he claimed.
Even when Mr Uvaraja asked for help, he was allegedly “shunned” and was told he was being “disobedient”, he added, claiming that when he called helplines he was “scolded”.
Eventually, he had “no one to go to”, he concluded.
MS News extends our condolences to his loved ones and hopes they will gain closure from the investigation into his allegations.
Seek help if you need support
If you or anyone you know is in need of support, these are some hotlines to call:
- Samaritans of Singapore 24/7 Hotline: 1767
- Institute of Mental Health’s Helpline: 6389 2222
- Singapore Association for Mental Health Helpline: 1800 283 7019
There is also a list of international helplines here.
However, call 24-hour emergency medical services if someone you know is at immediate risk.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Google Maps.
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