SINGAPORE - A man wielding a knife was shot dead during a confrontation with police officers at Block 33 Bendemeer Road, near Boon Keng, on Wednesday (March 23).
The police said during a press conference on Wednesday night that the 64-year-old man was walking around the foot of the HDB block shouting and brandishing a knife at around 4pm.
When officers arrived at the scene, the man came out of a unit and officers told him to drop the weapon but he refused, and walked towards them.
The police officers fired three taser shots at the man and retreated but he continued to walk towards them.
"As there was imminent threat to the safety of the officers, one of the officers fired a shot from his pistol at the man, and the man fell to the ground," said the police.
The officer performed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the man, who had a gunshot wound in his chest.
He was unconscious when taken to hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 5.13pm.
The man was wanted by the Central Narcotics Bureau, and drug apparatus was found in his flat.
The man was also being investigated for offences of rash act and voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty.
He is said to have then thrown items out of his window and when officers engaged him, he used a chair to injure an officer, added the police.
This is the second time in two months that a police officer has had to shoot a man with a knife.
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On Feb 17, a man was shot during a confrontation with police officers outside Clementi Neighbourhood Police Centre, in Clementi Avenue 5.
The police said then that the 49-year-old man was seen holding a knife and standing outside the police station and when officers approached him, he shouted incoherently. The man refused to comply and charged towards one of them.
The officer fired one shot with his service revolver, and the man was conscious when he was taken to the hospital and was in a stable condition.
This article was first published in The Straits Times. Permission required for reproduction.