Decomposing body of 66-year-old man found in cluttered Boon Keng flat

A 66-year-old man was found dead in a flat on Sunday (Jan 5) after his neighbours alerted the police over a stench wafting out from the unit.

According to Shin Min Daily News, the gate of the flat at Block 4 Boon Keng Road could not fully open as a "mountain of rubbish" was blocking the way.

It was also difficult to move inside the flat as it was filled with miscellaneous items such as food containers. Workers were seen moving part of the items outside the flat.

The scene was also cordoned off as at least three police officers entered the flat for investigations.

A resident named Bali, who lives on the same floor as the deceased, told Shin Min that the man rarely interacted with his neighbours, often leaving his home early and returning late. 

The 37-year-old added that her husband noticed a foul smell when passing by the deceased's unit on Saturday night.

She believed that other residents alerted the police after realising something was amiss. 

Another resident, surnamed Chen, who lives in the flat above the deceased's, told the Chinese evening daily that he and his wife, started noticing ants and cockroaches in their kitchen about two months ago.

They also caught an occasional whiff of a foul smell. 

"At first, we thought it was coming from the garbage chute, but we found that the ants were crawling up from the kitchen on the second floor," said Chen, 42.

Chen added that since he moved in two years ago, he has not met anyone living in the deceased's unit.

Responding to AsiaOne's queries, the police confirmed that they had received a report on a case of unnatural death. 

A 66-year-old man was found lying motionless in his unit and later pronounced dead. 

Based on preliminary investigations, the police do not suspect foul play.

Investigations are ongoing.

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xingying.koh@asiaone.com