Shooting suspect charged with capital offence

Muhammad Iskandar Sa'at allegedly fired three shots from a policeman's revolver last Saturday.
Muhammad Iskandar Sa'at allegedly fired three shots from a policeman's revolver last Saturday. TNP PHOTO

THE 23-year-old Singaporean man who allegedly fired three shots from a policeman's revolver at Khoo Teck Puat Hospital last Saturday was charged yesterday with a capital offence under the Arms Offences Act.

Muhammad Iskandar Sa'at is accused of discharging three rounds from policeman Mohammad Sadli Razali's .38-calibre Taurus revolver some time between 7.03pm and 7.06pm that day, with the intent to cause physical injury. If convicted, he faces the death penalty.

At the time of the offence, Muhammad Iskandar was in police custody for an unrelated charge of motor vehicle theft. He had been charged earlier last Saturday with stealing a white Mitsubishi lorry from a loading bay in Sembawang Drive the day before, along with his accomplice Muhammad Taufiq Jasmi, also 23.

While in custody, Muhammad Iskandar complained of chest pains and was escorted to Khoo Teck Puat Hospital to seek medical attention.

A struggle ensued after he attempted to escape while inside a private room in the hospital, and the shots were fired. The 31-year-old officer whose gun was snatched sustained gunshot wounds to his thumb and foot.

Muhammad Iskandar arrived in court in a police van yesterday afternoon wearing a white polo T-shirt and beige trousers.

His brother and sister-in-law were in court, accompanied by another man and a woman. The accused requested to speak to his sister-in-law, and the prosecution did not object. Bail was not offered and he remains in remand. His case will be mentioned again next Monday.

Asked about the incident at an event yesterday, Second Minister for Home Affairs Masagos Zulkifli said: "It's still before the courts and we have to do our investigation. The findings from this investigation will help us diagnose what the problems are and what kind of correction we may need to make in future."

rkurohi@sph.com.sg

Join ST's WhatsApp Channel and get the latest news and must-reads.

A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on June 23, 2015, with the headline Shooting suspect charged with capital offence. Subscribe