Crimes in Singapore solved by DNA testing

As a kid who’d grown up watching Hong Kong cop dramas whenever my parents would have the telly on, I’d always wondered if classics like Forensic Heroes were anything close to realistic. Turns out, all the crime solving antics they pull off on screen are not completely far-fetched.

In fact, law enforcement on the Little Red Dot has been using these techniques to nail perps for a long time now, and one of them stands out in particular – DNA testing. To drive home its efficacy, here are some crimes in Singapore that were solved by DNA testing, whose lawbreakers might have given justice the slip if not for this breakthrough in forensic science.

1. 1996 Ang Mo Kio homicide

First ever homicide case solved with Singapore’s DNA database

Here’s a fun fact to start us off: the first homicide case in Singapore solved with DNA testing was cracked 8 years after the crime was committed. The year was 1996, where 29-year-old Zulkarnain bin Kemat murdered his drinking and smoking partner 51-year-old Jetkor Miang Singh after he was invited into her flat in Ang Mo Kio.

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Right before the bloodshed, the duo got into a heated argument, which resulted in Zulkarnian taking a nail file out of his pocket and proceeded to stab Jetkor multiple times in the neck while kicking her repeatedly, killing her right then and there.

Zulkarnian fled the scene, but when the police were called to the flat, they bagged a couple of disposed cigarette butts that he was smoking on before the murder which contained his saliva for investigation.

Unfortunately, the case was initially unsolved as the police could not establish concrete evidence that he had murdered the victim, as DNA profiling was not fully reliable back then. As DNA profiling became more accurate over the years, the case was reopened in 2003, and in 2004 DNA samples were taken from Zulkarnian, as he was serving time for a drug offence.

The Singapore DNA database was launched in 2004 with the genetic profiles of about 53,000 accused persons and prisoners.
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Lo and behold, his DNA matched the sample found on the cigarette butts; the police had their man after 8 long years, and Zulkarnian was sentenced to 8 years in jail and 6 strokes of the cane.

2. 2005 Kallang River body parts case

Gruesome murder involving severed body parts found in Kallang River

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Despite their scenic views, huge bodies of water in Singapore have garnered quite the reputation of being somewhat eerie – case in point, Bedok Reservoir. That’s because bodies of suicide and murder victims have wound up in them in the past, and the Kallang River’s no different.

In 2005, a cleaner along the banks of the Kallang River came across a waterlogged cardboard box, and to his surprise, a portion of a human torso fell out of it when he attempted to move it. The police were called to the scene swiftly, who soon uncovered another box not too far from the initial one, containing the upper half of the same torso.

As the limbs were still attached to the torso, they could run a scan on its fingerprints to figure out who it belonged to. The victim was discovered to be 22-year-old Liu Hong Mei, a Chinese national working in Singapore. The police also found out she was having an affair with her work supervisor, 50-year-old Leong Siew Chor, on the down-low, and so they paid him a visit.

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Image credit: SPF

Upon searching his house, the police found a bloodstain under the sink of his suspiciously pristine toilet, and DNA testing revealed that it belonged to Liu. When confronted with forensic evidence, Leong came clean and told police that he had stolen Liu’s ATM card and withdrew $2,000 from various ATMs around Singapore.

The act was captured by CCTVs, and as he did not want to be recognised by Liu who would consequently file a police report and reveal to the world – in particular Leong’s wife and 3 kids – that he was having an affair, he silenced her. Ultimately, Leong was convicted of murder, and sentenced to death by hanging in November 2007.

3. 2016 Gardens by the Bay murder

First time new DNA matching method was used to solve crime

We’ve talked about gathering vital forensic information from fingerprints and blood, but what happens when a murder occurs and does not even leave a body to examine? That was the predicament the police found themselves in when they apprehended 51-year-old Leslie Khoo Kwee Hock for the murder of his girlfriend, 31-year-old Cui Yajie.

Image credit: Gardens by the Bay

After receiving a report that Cui hadn’t reported to work for 3 days, the police had some questions for Khoo. They got him down to the station for interrogation, and he stated that he met up with Cui late one night, had a dispute about money that he owed her, and booted her from his car at Bay East Garden’s carpark at Gardens by the Bay.

Khoo’s car which was seized by HSA authorities for investigation.
Image credit: SPF

Undoubtedly, the police found his story to be fishy, and after HSA scientists did some prodding and uncovered traces of Cui’s blood in Khoo’s car, he confessed to strangling her in a fit of rage during their argument. The police then questioned him to know the whereabouts of Cui’s body, and that’s where it gets complicated.

You see, Khoo drove all the way to Lim Chu Kang Lane 8 to dispose of the body – by incinerating it with kerosene and charcoal. The body was reduced to ashes, save a few locks of Cui’s hair, but it was exactly what the authorities needed to identify the murder victim.

Image credit: SPF

The hair which police collected as evidence were missing their roots which possessed crucial DNA used for DNA matching, and so the HSA scientists relied, for the first time ever, on mitochondrial DNA sequencing. They did so by attaining a hair sample from Cui’s mother, and a match confirmed that the hair found at the crime scene was indeed Cui’s, which was enough to charge Khoo with murder.

4. 2016 St. James Power Station molotov cocktail incident

DNA match on evidence resulted in speedy 1-day solve

The St. James Power Station in Sentosa.
Image credit: Roots.sg

The 2016 case of mischief by fire at St. James Power Station is by no means as ghastly as the ones we’ve touched on so far, but it’s a stellar example of how efficient DNA testing is when it comes to solving cases in a jiffy.

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Image credit: Wikipedia

In September of 2016, 2 brothers were caught in an altercation with a group of clubbers at Club Hollywood Thai disco at St. James Power Station, and so the bouncers had to throw them out. The brothers would then seek revenge the very next day, armed with molotov cocktails fashioned from petrol-filled glass bottles.

Because Club Hollywood Thai Disco was pretty far from where they were discreetly positioned, they opted to lob their weapons at a closer bar. Thankfully no one was hurt as the bouncers managed to put out the fire swiftly. The police were soon alerted and began their sweep of the area for clues, which resulted in them finding a lighter left behind by the arsonists.

The police then ran DNA tests on the lighter; the samples returned a match in their database to someone who was previously convicted of a crime, and they managed to close the case within the next day. They would’ve caught the brothers eventually, but in this case, DNA testing was crucial in speeding up their investigations.

5. 2010 Mandai Tekong Park stabbing

Blood on knife sheath helped in investigations to stop serial stabber

Image credit: Outgress

You’ve probably never heard of Mandai Tekong Park, but a horrific murder took place on its grounds in September of 2010. 32-year-old Hoe Hong Lin was returning home after seeing off her relatives who visited her flat in Woodlands, when she was stabbed by an unknown stalker in Mandai Tekong Park.

She was stabbed 9 times in total, and succumbed to her injuries even after intervention from a group of teenagers who rushed over to help after hearing her piercing screams. The police were contacted, and a knife with a plastic sheath was recovered from the scene.

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And this is where DNA testing swoops in to shed some light on the case. The police were able to develop a partial DNA profile from a swab taken from the knife’s sheath and used to search against their DNA database. Along with extensive ground enquiries and investigations, they identified the murderer – 20-year-old Soh Wee Kian.

He was a full-time National Serviceman who went AWOL at the time of stabbing, and suffered from an adjustment disorder which led him to commit the heinous act. In the end, he was spared the death penalty but sentenced to life imprisonment on 22nd August 2013.

6. 2018 bomb threat to Parliament House & other key installations

DNA sample from stamp helped crack anonymous bomb threat case

As far as acts of terrorism within the country goes, Singapore’s law enforcement will bring down the hammer as soon as it catches the slightest whiff of something suspicious at play.

Image credit: SPF

A 46-year-old man had to learn the hard way, as he was the culprit behind mailing at least 5 bomb threats in the form of written letters to the Parliament House. He also sent some to other key installations like the headquarters of the police’s Special Operations Command unit, and curiously, to a 7-Eleven convenience store in Tanjong Katong.

He even resorted to using a stencil to craft his ominously worded threats to mask his identity. The letters were also anonymous with no return address, and so the police had their work cut out for them. However, when mailing out his letters, he forgot to account for one thing.

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His saliva was found on the adhesive side of the stamps he used, and the police were able to get a DNA match with someone on their database. In the end, he was caught, and was slapped with a 6-month staycation in Changi Prison.

Try your hand at cracking cases at UNTAME Breach Resort

Well, if you’d like to do some sleuthing yourselves and solve forensic-inspired mysteries like these, then look no further than Science Centre Singapore’s UNTAME Breach Resort. Yes, you read right, you won’t be frolicking in the ocean or catching some sun on sandy white beaches, but instead tasked with cracking a slew of crimes.

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Image credit: Science Centre Singapore

UNTAME Breach Resort is an after-hours event for visitors aged 15 and up, and it’s happening at Science Centre Singapore from now till 15th December 2024 on Fridays to Sundays, 5pm-10pm. Tickets start from $20/pax, and visitors can expect to explore various forensic-inspired zones, which will have them analysing blood spatter patterns, creating composite sketches, and decoding witness testimonies.

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Image credit: Science Centre Singapore

Besides, there’ll be plenty of IG-worthy photo ops along the way, as well as complimentary snacks and drinks on-site to fuel your investigations. You’ll also get same-night access to Science Centre Singapore’s galleries for some major Night at the Museum vibes.

Escape room enthusiasts are also in luck, as they’ll be able to bundle your UNTAME Breach Resort tickets with an Escape @ Science Centre experience for just $10. P.S. Our readers can snag a 10% discount on their bookings with the code <BRTSL10>.

Learn more about Science Centre Singapore’s UNTAME Breach Resort

This post was brought to you by Science Centre Singapore.
Cover image adapted from: @calvin_lim105 via Instagram, SPF, Tolga deniz Aran via Pexels