In the dead of night, the quiet streets of Singapore witnessed a dramatic series of events that would unfold into a high-stakes pursuit involving a suspected drink driver.
The incident, which took place on August 22, left three occupants of another car injured and it was one of three incidents that happened on 22 August that saw suspected drink-drivers being arrested, according to The Straits Times.
Among one of the arrested was a suspected drunk driver who beat a red light before crashing into a Honda car and injuring the occupants inside, and abandoning his Porsche and fleeing the scene.
The Singapore Police Force addressed the media on 21 September at the police headquarters and shed light on the incidents, including the Serangoon Road incident.
A Night of Chaos
The first incident took place along Serangoon Road, when a 34-year-old suspected drink driver allegedly beat a red light before crashing into a Honda and damaging a lamp post in the process.
The drunk driver then abandoned his Porsche and fled the scene, before being tracked down by the police and arrested.
The second incident occurred when officers from Tanglin Police Division noticed a car stopping about 100 metres away at about 3.20am in the morning – the 42-year-old driver had ran from the scene before being tracked down by police in 2 hours and arrested for evading a road block as well as drink driving.
The third incident saw a 27-year-old woman arrested by police officers from Bedok Police Division, after she had similarly stopped her car about 100 metres away from the officers at a roadblock; she was also arrested for suspected drink driving and evading a roadblock.
Serangoon Road case
The events began to unfold on Serangoon Road, where a 34-year-old man was allegedly involved in a collision with a Honda car after running a red light.
Shockingly, instead of stopping to assess the situation and render assistance, the driver of the Porsche fled the scene, leaving behind a trail of destruction.
The collision also resulted in damage to a lamp post, adding to the gravity of the situation.
The Singapore Police Force swiftly responded to the incident, with officers from various divisions converging on the scene.
Meanwhile, the occupants of the Honda car, who had sustained injuries in the collision, were rushed to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for medical attention. The pursuit of the Porsche driver continued relentlessly.
Senior Staff Sergeant Mohamed Hafiz Maideen, from the K-9 Unit, was among the first officers to arrive at the crash site after the authorities were alerted. He described how he used an unusual yet effective method to track down the Porsche driver.
He said that he used the driver’s wallet that was found in the car and introduced its scene to his dog, before the dog led them to Upper Serangoon Road and to the driver’s home at Potong Pasir.
Sergeant Muhammad Adzlan Hussein and another officer then proceeded to the unit and they knew the man was home because they saw a man matching his description in a CCTV footage, and they described him as walking unsteadily and looking drunk.
They knocked on his door but he didn’t answer, and other officers that included those from the Special Operations Command were deployed, after one of the officers believed that the man was barricading himself inside.
The ground commander then gave the green light to breach the unit, and officers forced their way in at 6am before finding the man inside the toilet wearing nothing and unharmed – he then wore his clothes before being arrested by the police.