Man, 46, arrested after slashing wife with cleaver at Liang Seah Street

SINGAPORE - A woman was slashed at Liang Seah Street, in the Bugis area, by a man on Thursday (April 14) afternoon.

The Singapore Civil Defence Force said it received a call for assistance at 75 Beach Road at about 5.30pm.

Two people were taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

A police spokesman said it responded to an assault near Beach Road at about 5.30pm and arrested a 46-year-old man for his involvement in the attempted murder of a 41-year-old woman who is believed to be his wife.

The police added: "Preliminary investigations revealed the man had purportedly slit his own wrists with a chopper."

It said the man and woman were sent to hospital while conscious.

Police investigations are ongoing.

The police also said it was aware of videos circulating online on the incident, and urged the public to refrain from circulating the videos and speculating on the case.

Several videos of the brutal assault have been circulating online and in message groups.

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The man is clad in black T-shirt and trousers, wearing a black cap, and could be seen hacking at the woman with a weapon.

His hands were stained with blood.

Several members of the public, who appeared to be kitchen staff from a nearby hotpot restaurant, Zhong Hua Steamboat, were seen throwing various items, including chairs and pails, to ward off the attacker.

The man was seen running towards Beach Road, before running back towards a back alley of Liang Seah Street.

In a separate video that appeared to have been taken from a window overlooking the back alley, the man could be seen charging at and slashing at a member of the public holding a display stand.

He then retreated into the alley to pick up a black briefcase momentarily, before dropping it, then walking out of sight into the back entrance of a ground floor store unit.

When ST reached the site at about 7pm, there were four police cars there and Zhong Hua Steamboat was cordoned off.

More than 10 police officers were present and blood stains were visible on the ground of the back alley.

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A staff member from an eatery nearby, who wished to be known only as Ms Zhang, said she saw a woman running out from behind one of the shops and a man coming at her with a chopper.

He chased her to the front of the outlet, pressed her to the ground and hacked at her with the weapon.

Her head and face were bloodied.

About seven to eight employees from the hotpot restaurant ran out and threw items at him until he backed away, she added.

The ruckus lasted for about 10 minutes.

The owner of next-door restaurant, Chong Qing Origin Hotpot, who did not wish to be named, said the victim was one of his employees, in her early 40s and was divorced.

Another person, who runs an online media site on the third storey of Liang Seah Place, a building on the street, and wanted to be known only as Mr Lim, said he and his colleagues heard a commotion from the toilet window and filmed the incident.

His video showed the man in the back alley.

One of his three colleagues who witnessed the slashing called the police.

Said Mr Lim: "We all felt it was very surreal. It's not something you usually see. There was a lot of blood all over the back alley streets."

A staff member of Zhong Hua Steamboat, who wanted to be known only as Mr Ning, said four employees from their restaurant came out to help.

He added in Mandarin: "I was a bit scared, but I also wanted to make sure the man didn't hurt anyone else."

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Owner of Samurai BBQ, Mr Leonard Shi, 41, said he was smoking in the back alley when he heard a woman shouting and a man, about 1.6m tall, hacking at her with a chopper.

He hacked at her twice before the chopper broke and he continued, holding on to the chopper blade and pulling at her hair.

Mr Shi said in Mandarin: "I thought there was a fight, but then I saw the man slashing at the woman's throat and her face was already bleeding."

He added that the man stood up suddenly and went to rummage in his bag.

He said the man went at her with another chopper, continuing to slash at her.

Mr Shi said: "My manager and I threw a road sign him. I shouted that I had called the police, but there was no response from him.

"I shouted at him to put his knife down and he came at me with the chopper. I backed away slowly."

He said the police shot the man with a Taser gun.

Recalling the incident, Mr Shi said: "If I had not helped her, she would have died."

This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.