Shock and disbelief over tragic incident

Parents fear for the worst after receiving messages from their children in RVHS

Students were allowed to leave the school in batches from about 3pm. Students who had witnessed the alleged attack, and classmates of the alleged assailant, were kept behind to assist with police investigations and were allowed to leave at about 6.30
Students were allowed to leave the school in batches from about 3pm. Students who had witnessed the alleged attack, and classmates of the alleged assailant, were kept behind to assist with police investigations and were allowed to leave at about 6.30pm. ST PHOTOS: MARK CHEONG
A bouquet of flowers placed at the back gate of River Valley High School yesterday. Staff and students were assembled at the school hall and briefed on the incident at about 2pm.
Police were alerted to the incident at River Valley High School at 11.40am and arrived quickly at the scene.
Students were allowed to leave the school in batches from about 3pm. Students who had witnessed the alleged attack, and classmates of the alleged assailant, were kept behind to assist with police investigations and were allowed to leave at about 6.30
Police personnel gathering evidence at the school yesterday.
Left: Police were alerted to the incident at River Valley High School at 11.40am and arrived quickly at the scene. Right: Police personnel gathering evidence at the school yesterday.
A bouquet of flowers placed at the back gate of River Valley High School yesterday. Staff and students were assembled at the school hall and briefed on the incident at about 2pm.

He was at home in Pasir Ris when he received a series of messages from his daughter, a student at River Valley High School (RVHS), that sent him rushing out of the front door.

"My school is very dangerous now. There is someone wielding an axe threatening people. We are running away," the 13-year-old girl told her family at 11.50am.

Mr Huang, who declined to give his full name, did not know it then, but a 16-year-old male student of the popular school had allegedly killed a 13-year-old Secondary 1 boy.

With most of Singapore working from home, the 43-year-old, who works in the IT industry, said he rushed to the school in Boon Lay in a panic.

Among the messages sent to him by his daughter, who is in Secondary 1, was a short video of students running in the school.

Fearing the worst, he urged his daughter to run out of the school and meet him at a nearby mall. But she was told by teachers to stay put for her own safety.

A few minutes later, Mr Huang was relieved to see another message from her saying that the situation was under control.

Parents of RVHS students had their hearts in their mouths throughout yesterday afternoon as news spread in text messages of a serious incident at the school. Some messages described a student wielding an axe and washing himself at a water cooler.

Many parents said they found out about the incident through news reports.

A mother, who wanted to be known only as Madam Chin, said she received a call from her daughter at about noon during the girl's lunch break.

The 40-year-old said the Secondary 3 student was sobbing on the phone and unclear about the threat but said she was moved to another classroom, a safe place with teachers around her.

  • The day as it unfolded

  • Students of the school were rushed into classrooms for their own protection yesterday after a 13-year-old student was allegedly killed by a 16-year-old from the same school.

    Several messages went out on social media as staff and students tried to make sense of what was happening. Some students also called their parents, sobbing at the other end of the phone.

    The Straits Times breaks down the day as it unfolded. 11.40am: Police receive a call for assistance at River Valley High School (RVHS), which is located at 6 Boon Lay Avenue. Officers arrive quickly at the scene and find a 13-year-old student with multiple wounds at a school toilet. The boy is later pronounced dead by a paramedic.

    11.50am: Mr Huang, 43, receives messages from his daughter, a student at the school, telling him someone is allegedly armed with an axe. He tells her to run to a nearby mall, but she is stopped from leaving the school grounds. She later tells him she is safe with the teachers. He rushes over to the school from his home in Pasir Ris.

    1pm: A crime scene investigation van, an ambulance and at least four police vehicles are at the scene. Students are supposed to be released for their lunch break, but are instead being kept in their classrooms.

    2pm: An ambulance is seen leaving the school. Students are ushered into the school hall for a briefing by staff.

    3.20pm: Staff lead students out of the school compound. Several parents are already at the school waiting for their children. Some students remain in school.

    4.30pm: Education Minister Chan Chun Sing posts on Facebook about the incident.

    5.20pm: Police issue a statement revealing a 16-year-old boy has been arrested and will be charged with murder. An axe is seized. 5.30pm: Minister Chan arrives at RVHS.

    6.15pm: The remaining students are released.

    6.30pm: Minister Chan speaks to the media at the school.

    7pm: The police hearse leaves.

Police said they were alerted to the incident at 11.40am and found the victim in a toilet with multiple wounds on his body. He was pronounced dead at the scene by a Singapore Civil Defence Force paramedic.

The 16-year-old boy was arrested by the police and an axe was seized as evidence.

The Straits Times was at the scene at about 1pm and spoke to several parents who were scanning their phones for updates.

One mother, who declined to be named, said it took her 30 minutes to reach her daughter.

She said the girl was told to stay in class without any explanation, and it was only at about 2pm that staff and students were assembled at the school hall and briefed on the incident. Students were allowed to leave the school in batches from about 3pm.

Madam Chai, who declined to give her age and occupation and whose daughter is a student of the school, said RVHS sent out an alert through the Ministry of Education's Parents Gateway portal to notify parents of a "serious incident".

Asked if she was worried about her daughter's safety, she said: "As information is coming in, it seems like a one-off incident. I am more concerned about whether the incident will affect her emotionally."

Mr Huang's daughter told him the alleged attack took place near her classroom.

"At the beginning, she kept asking for her mother. I thought she was joking," said Mr Huang, adding that the girl was still shaking with fear when she was reunited with her family at 4pm.

Students who had witnessed the alleged attack, and classmates of the alleged assailant, were kept behind to assist with police investigations and were allowed to leave at about 6.30pm.

Mr and Mrs Lee, both 54, were among the parents who were waiting for them. They said their daughter, a Secondary 4 student, had texted them at about 2pm saying she was all right. They said she seemed calm and told them that she had to stay back in school as she knew the alleged assailant.

"This piece of news shocked us. We didn't think something like this would happen," said Mr Lee.

Education Minister Chan Chun Sing visited the school at about 5.30pm and spoke to the principal, Mrs Teo Khin Hiang, teachers and affected students.

Giving brief remarks to the media later, the minister said the school is in close communication with parents to provide information they may need to have a sense of assurance.

RVHS has students aged between 12 and 18, as it offers the six-year Integrated Programme, which allows students to skip the O levels and instead take the A levels in their sixth year.


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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on July 20, 2021, with the headline Shock and disbelief over tragic incident. Subscribe