Residents of Yishun were left baffled — and amused — after CCTV footage emerged showing a man crawling along the corridor of a Housing Board block during the Hungry Ghost Festival. The video, which has since gone viral on Facebook and Instagram, reignited the estate’s quirky reputation for bizarre incidents.
In the clip, the man is seen leopard-crawling on all fours along the common corridor before standing up and walking away, only to resume crawling again shortly after. The strange act, captured on a resident’s security camera, sparked immediate speculation online. Some netizens joked that the man was training for his upcoming reservist cycle, while others quipped he might be a “cat burglar” practising his moves.
The timing of the incident — on the third day of the seventh lunar month — fuelled creepier interpretations. Commenters teased that “maybe he’s not human” or suggested that the man was “possessed” during the Ghost Festival. Others, however, offered more grounded explanations, guessing he could have been trying to steal slippers or simply avoiding neighbours in the corridor.
Netizens React With Humour and Horror
Reactions online ranged from outright laughter to unease. One commenter joked, “Whose father please claim,” while another wrote, “Specialist in leopard crawl — commando standard!” Some residents admitted they would have been terrified if they had seen the scene in person, especially with Hungry Ghost Festival rituals ongoing in the estate.
Several commenters also pointed out how common CCTV footage is in HDB blocks, questioning why people continue such odd behaviour despite knowing they are being recorded. One netizen remarked, “Without CCTV, the world would be full of thieves — now at least we catch them crawling.”
Yishun’s Reputation for Odd Incidents
Yishun has long been the subject of internet jokes in Singapore, often linked with unusual or headline-grabbing cases. From animal attacks to bizarre stunts, the estate has developed a reputation as the island’s unofficial hotspot for the strange and unexpected.
While there has been no official statement on the man’s identity or his reasons for crawling, the video has once again cemented Yishun’s image as the place “where anything can happen.” For now, residents can only speculate whether this was a case of attempted mischief, a prank gone wrong, or simply one more addition to Yishun’s ever-growing list of urban legends.