Always on guard: He protects celebs, VIPs and million-dollar gems

In this series, people from all walks of life offer an inside – often unfiltered – take on their livelihoods and what keeps them going in their jobs. In this instalment, William Tjen, a bodyguard at security agency Horus I, shares what it is like to look after public figures and their assets, as told to The Straits Times.

I am 48, and I’ve been a bodyguard for half my life, protecting corporate honchos and international stars like singers Rain, Jisoo from Blackpink and Jackson Wang, and footballer David Beckham.

Early in my career, I protected the prime ministers of Singapore as part of an elite unit in the Singapore Police Force.

After about seven years, I joined the private security industry to get more experience and ventured into protecting chief executives and other corporate leaders.

My company Horus I provides executive protection in the form of specialised personal security for VIPs, including the famous and the ultra-rich. This typically involves a big team, including a main bodyguard team, an advanced team and a back-up team.

Since I started protecting celebrities and artistes, my friends and family have spotted me on the red carpet at big events on social media platforms TikTok and Xiaohongshu.

I’ve worked for South Korean stars like Song Hye-kyo and Byeon Woo-seok, and other celebrities like American actor James Marsden and British singer Leona Lewis.

We cannot get star-struck, and asking for a photo with a celebrity client is a big no-no. I used to idolise Song, for instance, but now I see her in a more professional light as she’s an artiste I was assigned to protect.

There’s a lot of planning involved in escorting celebrities, from the moment they touch down at the airport till they leave the country.

We need to know where they are landing and if they are taking a commercial or private jet. Sometimes the artistes post on social media about their arrival timing and flight details. News travels fast among fans, so they would already be waiting at the arrival point. The next commotion point may be at the hotel.

I will normally chat with the artistes and ask for their schedule. Sometimes they might want to have a bit of privacy, like wanting to go to the hotel gym. On rare occasions, they do not want security to follow them during private meetings. I would tell them very nicely that I’d still be nearby and ready to react. We are also trained to be attentive to their needs. If they want a certain food, for example, we will try to find it nearby.

We can’t carry weapons, but we need to know defence tactics. However, with fans and intruders, we are mindful not to use excessive force, like pinning someone to the ground or using punches or kicks.

I train with my team regularly in unarmed combat and how to lock or restrain subjects. I’ve maintained an active lifestyle since I was young – running, hitting the gym and enjoying cardiovascular exercises.

In my line of work, the inexperienced ones focus on bringing down the aggressor. But our priority is really to bring our clients to safety and prevent any loss of life or property.

Our secondary focus is to protect the reputation of our brand client or artiste. If an artiste trips, his or her reputation would be at risk even if there are no safety concerns.

We are trained to spot suspicious figures. For instance, we pay more attention to those who don’t dress for the occasion, or someone we’ve spotted more than thrice over a short period of time.

The work is very niche, so after we work with some artistes several times, we start to recognise some fans.

We keep an eye on people’s hands and expressions, and make sure the fans do not get too close to the artistes or touch them. We rely on our instinct to anticipate actions, and nudge one another to be watchful.

Generally, we look out for attention-seeking tendencies, such as fans eager to give gifts to and get autographs from the artistes. But we try not to antagonise fans because, at the end of the day, they have come to see someone they admire.

Sometimes I try to talk to them before the artiste arrives, and they usually listen. I tell them to remain calm and say: “You wouldn’t want to see your idol get hurt or caught in a stampede, right?”

Likewise, if celebrities want to walk towards the fans, they usually check with us whether it is appropriate to do so.

It can be challenging as we need to deal with many parties on the job: the artistes and their managers, agencies, brands and event organisers. This is why emotional intelligence is critical. We must lock our own temperament in a locker, too.

Escorting these stars to gala events opened another window of opportunity for Horus I: to protect the multimillion-dollar jewellery worn by artistes and models. The agency now works with over 30 luxury jewellery and watchmakers in Singapore.

Bracelets and rings pose the biggest challenge because of hand movements. We are less worried about someone grabbing jewellery off our protectee than about small pieces coming loose or being dropped unintentionally. If a ring drops, I must be able to spot it quickly.

The artistes themselves know that what they are wearing is worth millions, so they would be concerned about scratching or losing it.

It was a unique piece that could be transformed into a pair of earrings and a ring, at a private sales event for high-net-worth individuals in Thailand.

Most high jewellery pieces are one-of-a-kind and feature flawless precious stones, making them highly coveted.

The protocols and assignments vary, depending on the client. While some jewellers are comfortable having people around the showcase, others do not allow anyone near it except for security guards and handlers.

Singapore is deemed very safe, so high jewellery events may even have open showcases. But in places like Malaysia and Thailand, it is common practice to have armed guards protecting locked showcases.

Our clients have flown us to Australia, Bangkok and, more recently, Langkawi in Malaysia, for private viewing events.

The trend nowadays is to book a villa, which is riskier than jewellery exhibition venues. A villa on an island, for instance, may be accessible by sea and land, so there are more access points to secure.

Once, my team and I were assigned to look after seven models showcasing jewellery. Before they walked to the runway, I had to account for more than 25 pieces being worn. We also had to ensure members of the public did not get too close to the models or disrupt their catwalk.

I always carry a torchlight for various purposes. Companies often hold events at remote places with greenery and uneven roads, so if the road is dark, an artiste might trip unless I light the path.

At other times, I may shine the light into an intruder’s eyes as a defensive tactic. And if there is a power outage during an event, the light would be useful to evacuate people to safety.

When I was young, I was intrigued by police officers. They put their lives on the line and sacrifice their time to help people and prevent crime.

I studied maritime transport in polytechnic and thought I would work aboard a vessel. I even considered joining the Singapore navy. But six months before graduation, my friends and I went to a career booth and got to know about the Singapore Police Force, which I joined in 1998.

After three years on the violent crime squad, I joined a specialised unit responsible for bodyguarding called Police Security Command. I thought, wouldn’t it be cool to protect Singapore’s leaders?

The training pushed us to our physical and mental limits. Besides handling firearms and various weapons, we had to be able to carry a VIP on our backs and administer first aid. We were also trained in precision shooting, tactical driving and technical countersurveillance measures, such as scanning for hidden cameras and bugs in a room.

I was first assigned to protect then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong. I did this for about two years, then I was picked for the new team protecting Lee Hsien Loong.

In Singapore, the highest level of security is for the head of Government, who is the prime minister, and he has a big security team around him, including traffic outriders.

When I joined the private security sector, the first and biggest hurdle I had to cross was accepting that I did not have a firearm and warrant card any more. When I was a police officer, people generally complied if I told them to step back. Now, I have to use charisma and wit to get things done. Sometimes, people would challenge me and say: “Who are you? Why cannot?”

Many people think security is a very easy, low-end job. But you need networking skills and to build trust to do the job well. And if we do not plan our missions properly and put proper resources towards them, things can be very dangerous.

We also have to coordinate with the hotel, ground-floor security and driver. Everything has to be perfect, with no room for error or distraction. If something happens, even within a split second, it is difficult to recover.

On top of the tension and any friction with other parties involved, we may get just two or three hours of sleep a day during assignments. But when everything is done, the celebs are very thankful to us.

Got an interesting job to share? Write in to us at ssharon@sph.com.sg. Catch up on the rest of our On The Job series here.