SINGAPORE - Malaysian actor Kamal Adli, 36, was hospitalised after he was attacked during a fan meet at the Singapore Expo on Sunday night.

A 33-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the incident and will be charged in court on Tuesday for his suspected involvement for voluntarily causing hurt with a dangerous weapon.

A police spokesman said they were alerted to a fight at 9.19pm on Sunday.

“The 36-year-old man was conscious when conveyed to the hospital,” said the spokesman.

A baton was seized as a case exhibit, he added.

The incident happened when Mr Kamal and his wife, actress Uqasha Senrose, made an appearance on the last day of Hari Raya Mega Sale 2023, a three-day fair at Singapore Expo Hall 5A.

Ms Uqasha, whose real name is Nik Zaris Uqasha, told The Straits Times on Monday that the assailant had approached Mr Kamal during a photo-taking session and had called out her husband’s name before pulling the weapon from his pocket.

He then struck Mr Kamal twice on the head, which made him fall and hit his face on a table.

She said that after being knocked to the ground, Mr Kamal looked up at his attacker and asked: “Why did you hit me? What did I do?”

But the man continued his assault. On Monday morning, Mr Kamal still had several bruise marks on his body, she said.

Mr Roslan Shah, a celebrity host who had invited the couple to the event, said: “I was outside the Expo hall at the time of the attack, but I hurried back when I saw many people exiting the hall.

“I went back in and saw Ms Uqasha crying for help, and lots of blood on the floor.”

As Ms Uqasha tried to stop the bleeding with a cloth, members of the public prevented the attacker from leaving, before the police arrived and arrested the heavily tattooed man, said Mr Roslan.

Mr Kamal was rushed to Changi General Hospital and received four stitches.

Ms Uqasha, 31, recounted in a teary Instagram post to her 5.3 million followers on Sunday night that the attacker used a weapon she described as a “chota” and hit Mr Kamal repeatedly on his head, face, chest and back.

She described the attacker as having a “sinister smile”, and said that he did not seem to care that the assault happened in public. She thanked those who helped to apprehend him.

“The doctor said if the wound had been a few centimetres lower, Mr Kamal would have been in grave danger,” she told ST.

Mr Kamal and Ms Uqasha recently acted together in Akira Khan, a Malaysian television romantic drama series.

Mr Roslan, a Singaporean based in Malaysia for more than 22 years for work, has brought in several Malaysian actors and singers for events like the Hari Raya Mega Sale.

He said this is the first time such an incident has happened.

“Previously, some celebrities would choose to bring their bodyguards. But as this was a joyous Hari Raya event, Mr Kamal and Ms Uqasha opted not to have one. They did not expect this to happen,” he said.

Police investigations are ongoing. If convicted, the offence of voluntarily causing hurt with a dangerous weapon carries a jail term of up to seven years, a fine, caning, or any combination of such punishments.

ST has contacted Singapore Expo partner Constellar for comment.

This is the second time the Hari Raya Mega Sale 2023 has made headlines.

On Saturday, it was reported that 24 food stalls and food trucks were suspended after officers from the Singapore Food Agency found them operating without licences.