Man arrested after allegedly punching, slashing Certis officers with sickle at Sembawang

[UPDATE Nov 11] In a joint statement on Tuesday (Nov 10), Certis and NEA said that the officers were attacked after completing a smoking enforcement action at an HDB void deck. The suspect was present but he was not a party involved in the smoking enforcement action.

One of the officers is recovering in hospital and in a stable condition while the other has received outpatient treatment.

Certis and NEA added: "The safety and well-being of our officers is our top priority and our immediate concern is to support the affected officers in their recovery.

"We will stand by our officers and render our full assistance to the police in their investigation."

The police arrested a 30-year-old man for his possible involvement in an attack of two Certis officers at Canberra Link.

He allegedly assaulted the officers yesterday (Nov 9) by punching one of them in the face and slashing the other on his hand and legs with a weapon. A bloodstained sickle, believed to be the weapon used, was found near the scene.

The pair of Certis officers are enforcement officers attached to the National Environment Agency (NEA), the police said in a news release today. They were found conscious and taken to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital. 

The police were alerted to the incident at about 7.30pm, however, the man had fled before their arrival at the scene.

They nabbed the suspect within seven hours, having identified him through images captured by cameras at the scene as well as the Certis officers' body cameras.

Police investigations are still ongoing. 

The man will be charged in court tomorrow with voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapon. If convicted, he is liable to a fine, a jail term not exceeding seven years, caning or any combination of such punishments. 

The police added that they have "zero tolerance towards such brazen acts of violence which threatens the safety of public servants who are carrying out their duties” and will not hesitate to take action against those who blatantly disregard the law.

annatan@asiaone.com