Man Involved in Balestier Shooting Case Related What Happened & Told a Different Story

By
Zhi Hao
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There are two sides to any equation.

And it appears that the Balestier shooting case is no different.

The suspect involved has told his version of events…

And apparently, it’s a whole lot different from what the official one entailed.

Balestier Shooting Case

Lest you’re unaware, here’s a not-so-quick run-through of the official version of events.

According to CNA, three plainclothes officers had turned up at a residential unit along Balestier Road on 5 November to apprehend suspects involved in a spate of cheating cases.

At that point in time, four individuals were in the unit: a 36-year-old man, a 22-year-old man, a 33-year-old woman and a 23-year-old woman.

Upon entry, the officers identified themselves.

And the assault ensued.

According to the officers, the 36-year-old suspect “suddenly lunged” at one of them and began to assault him, causing the policeman to fall while bleeding from the face.

A second officer then intervened and issued a warning to the assailant, but the assault did not cease.

A second suspect, the 22-year-old man, also stepped forward at this point, and was reported to have walked towards the fallen policeman.

At this juncture, the second officer thought of the worst-case scenario, and drew his revolver in concern for the safety of his partner.

He then warned the initial assailant, Prakash, to stop.

But the assailant reportedly did not comply and continued.

Suddenly, Prakash rushed towards the second officer to snatch his firearm.

At this point, the 22-year-old suspect, Nikhil, reportedly took over the beating of the fallen officer.

A struggled then ensued between Prakash and the second officer, during which a bullet was launched from the revolver.

Apparently, the second officer had fired at Prakash, and the round penetrated the latter’s abdomen.

Even then, the 36-year-old man did not immediately cease his attack.

“This did not immediately stop (the 36-year-old man) from his attempt to snatch the second officer’s revolver and the struggle continued,” said SPF.

Backup officers would eventually arrive to subdue both suspects.

The 36-year-old man was treated by paramedics before he was sent to hospital in a conscious state.

He is said to be in a stable condition at the moment.

As for the police officers, two sustained injuries, with the first suffering damage to his face and arm and the second to his hands and lips.

They required medical treatment, and are said to be recuperating now.

For the record, the other two suspects who were in the same unit were also arrested.

Man Involved in Balestier Shooting Case Related What Happened & Told a Different Story

But it appears that the 22-year-old suspect, Nikhil, has a different version of events to tell.

According to CNA, the 22-year-old refuted claims that he had assaulted the police officer.

Rather, he insisted that he did not do anything, and that the officers had simply drawn a weapon and fired at his friend.

“They took the gun and shoot my friend. I didn’t do anything and now… they want to charge me for assaulting an officer,” he said.

Apparently, the officers had turned off the light upon infiltration into the house, and proceeded to fight with Nikhil’s friend.

They then drew a revolver and fired.

Meanwhile, Nikhil was just squatting on the floor.

He also claimed that the officers did not allow him to speak to his mum.

“When they entered the house they (turned) off the light, then they fight with my friend, then they took out (a) gun and shoot, but I was squatting on the floor and now they say they are charging me for a cheating case (I’m not involved in). I don’t know why I’m being remanded,” he said.

“The laser was pointed at me, I didn’t do anything, I didn’t attack the officer at all, then they like don’t want to let me speak to my mum or anyone else.”

Not sure why there’s a laser involved. Did the officers carry SAR21 in or what?

History

According to the same report, Prakash and Nikhil have committed other offences prior to this one.

Nikhil, for one, is currently facing more than 20 charges, with a bulk of them related to drugs or in relation to violating rules while receiving police supervision.

Meanwhile, Prakash was previously sentenced in October 2018 to 34 months’ jail for 13 charges – mostly pertaining to cheating and computer offences.

Another 54 charges were also taken into account.

Apparently, he also faces upwards of 40 pending charges, including drug-related crimes, thievery and cheating.

Charged

Prakash Mathivanan, 36, has since been charged with the assault of a police officer, as well as the crime of cheating Singtel into sending seven iPhones worth S$14,273 to another man.

22-year-old Nikhil M Durgude was also charged for the assault of a police officer, by punching and kicking him.

33-year-old Malani Naidu Prabhakar Naidu was also slapped with one charge of scamming Singtel.

All three are set to return to court in due time.

If convicted of assault, Prakash and Nikhil could face a jail term of up to seven years, a fine, caning, or any combination of the three.

If convicted of cheating, the both of them could face a jail term of up to 10 years and a fine.

Previous Instance

Though rare, this particular case is not the first of its kind here.

Back in 2015, a 34-year-old man had crashed through a security barrier around the Shangri-La Hotel, where the Shangri-La Dialogue was being held.

Despite numerous calls for the vehicle to stop, Mohamad Taufik Zahar alias Ben did not comply.

This led to two stationed Gurkha officers firing five shots in total, the last of which struck Taufik in his head.

The 34-year-old died from the bullet, which fragmented upon impact and left no exit wound.

He, along with his peers in the vehicle, was later found to have consumed various forms of drugs.

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Zhi Hao
Email: [email protected]