A 64-year-old man was yesterday charged with the murder of a coffee shop helper in Lorong 23 Geylang.

Mr Goh Eng Thiam, 52, was found with a deep cut running from his left ear to the top of his head, while a wooden stick was reportedly found nearby.

Toh Sia Guan is alleged to have killed him between 7.30am and 8am on July 9.

Toh, who was wearing a red polo shirt, was expressionless when the charge was read to him in Mandarin.

The prosecution applied for him to be remanded at Central Police Division for investigation.

Toh, who was arrested on Thursday, will appear in court again on July 29.

If convicted of murder, he faces the death penalty.

Mr Goh's former wife, aged 56, her two daughters and a son-in-law were in the public gallery. The couple have been divorced for 11 years.

Elder daughter Sandra Goh, 31, who works in administration, said her brother, aged 19, could not be present as he was in school.

She told reporters outside the courtroom that they were there to see what the accused looked like.

She said she was "shocked'' to learn of her father's death. The last time she saw him was at her grandmother's wake in May last year.

"I still don't believe it is him (Toh). Very different from the (security) video," she said.

Ms Goh's sister, Theadra, 26, who works in telesales, said she took two weeks' leave to mourn her father.