Yishun Back in the News as Empty Bullet Cartridge Found in Yishun St 81

Yishun has been doing pretty well for the past few months.

Things like cat killings, wall-building and other strange stuff seem to be a thing of the past, and Yishun might’ve finally went into a golden age.

Until this happened.

5.56mm Empty Cartridge Found in Yishun

On 22 Sep, an empty 5.56mm round was found in Yishun st 81 at night. If you’ve served NS before, yes, it’s the round that we use for our SAR-21 rifles.

It was reported a man in his 30s made the report after discovering the cartridge. He had accidentally kicked the object by accident as he was passing by the area.

Pretty sure that guy has served NS in the army before ‘coz other people might just think that it’s a lipstick holder #justsaying

What’s a Cartridge?

Lest you think a cartridge is for a printer, here’s a little military lesson.

An empty bullet cartridge is a serious matter. Ask any NSmen and they’ll tell you the same thing: it’s so important that if you don’t find all the live rounds’ cartridges at the firing range, you can forget about going back to bunk and sleep.

In the army, we often called it a “round”.

While most Singaporeans who have been through NS in SAF or SPF would understand, here’s a simplified example: when a firearm is discharged, a bullet fly out towards its target…and a cartridge also “jump” out on the side of the firearm. In more realistic movies, you’ll see them flying off the firearm and landing on the ground loudly.

That cartridge is what is founded, not the bullet.

So don’t worry, no “bullet” was in Yishun despite it being a rather scary place.

Police Was Called & Task Force Turned Up

So when this matter was called in at around 8.09 pm, the police took it very seriously.

Kojhi Toh, a singer-songwriter, claimed that there were about 10 police officers who arrived on the scene.

An area was cordoned off and he could see the police officers taking something off the ground.

Investigations are still ongoing.

Speculations Abound on How This Cartridge Came About

Given how most of Singapore’s young sons have experienced firing range for themselves, several offered what they think happened.

Like bringing an empty round back home by accident.

Of all places, Yishun.

While most Singaporeans felt that all this fuss over an empty cartridge is an overkill, there’s a few that felt it was pretty justified.

He’s not kidding: soldiers have to declare loudly before leaving the area, though I can’t remember if that declaration is the exact correct phrase.

The Previous Time 5.56mm Rounds Made The News in S’pore

11 years ago, a NSF, Cpl Dave Teo sneaked out of camp during his guard duty with a SAR-21 rifle, 8 live rounds and a 40cm knife.

According to reports, five of the rounds were issued for his guard duty, The remaining three were live rounds he had sneaked out from a live firing exercise.

It was speculated that he might’ve done so because of his failed relationship with his ex-girlfriend. They had dated for three years but broke off earlier that year.

Angry, he allegedly “harassed” her, even resorting to making death threats against her and her family.

On 3 Sep 2007, 200 Singapore Police Force officers were deployed to look for Teo. They managed to find him in the toilet of Cineleisure where he was presumedly trying to look for his ex-girlfriend.

He was sentenced to 9 years and two months in prison and given two strokes of the cane.

On a serious note, just don’t try anything funny.