'They depended on each other': Man allegedly spent 5 days with dead father's body in Hougang flat

A man reportedly stayed in his flat with the body of his elderly father for about five days after the latter died. 

The 81-year-old's body was finally discovered at about 11.15am on Thursday (Dec 14) inside his flat at Block 25 Hougang Ave 3, reported Shin Min Daily News. 

A reporter from the Chinese daily who visited the block that day saw police officers stationed outside the unit. They also entered the flat several times while conducting investigations. 

Shin Min also spoke to the elderly man's neighbours, one of whom shared that the elderly man's son is autistic. He is estimated to be in his 30s or 40s. 

"They have lived here for almost 20 years, and they depended on each other. The elderly man had to take care of his son because he has autism," said the 25-year-old security guard. 

She recalled that she last saw the elderly man earlier this month. His son had approached her on Dec 13, but walked away without saying a word. 

"He walked up to our unit seemingly to talk to us. I thought it was quite strange as he hasn't spoken to us for more than 10 years. My mother asked if he needed help, but he walked away," the neighbour recounted. 

"Now that I think of it, I feel a little sad. Maybe he wanted someone to help his father." 

Elderly man was often worried about his son: Neighbour 

Another neighbour, Zheng Qingliang, 71, told Shin Min that he used to chat with the elderly man at the void deck every Sunday. 

"I didn't see him last week, and the last time I saw him was two weeks ago. Before the pandemic he used to work part-time, but stopped working after. He also had some problems with his eye." 

Zheng also shared that the elderly man often expressed his worries about his son after he passes on. He added that he's never met the elderly man's partner. 

"I don't know if his wife is still alive, but father and son have always depended on each other." 

According to Zheng, the elderly man's son attends a special needs school in Ang Mo Kio. 

Zhang, who lives in the unit next to the elderly man, said both father and son have diabetes. She told Shin Min she hasn't seen the elderly man in four or five days. 

Zhang added that she noticed a pungent smell coming from their flat some two days ago. 

In response to AsiaOne's queries, the police confirmed that they were alerted to a case of unnatural death on Thursday. 

They said that an 81-year-old man was found lying motionless in a residential unit and was pronounced dead at the scene. 

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

READ ALSO: Man found dead in Sengkang flat after neighbour alerted police about pungent smell

claudiatan@asiaone.com