You may have seen a video of a man slicing a bottle with a samurai sword circulating online.
The man, 49-year-old Joel Ezekiel, has since been charged.
He was arrested after someone made a police report.
The Incident
According to a Singapore Police Force (SPF) news release on 29 October, the police arrested Ezekiel after receiving a report of a man videoing himself wielding a samurai sword in public.
The video was uploaded onto his public Facebook page.
In the video, Ezekiel can be heard saying that he wanted to “test how sharp” the sword was.
He then swung it and sliced a plastic water bottle in half.
The bottle was perched on a water drum placed on a stool.
Its contents splashed onto the floor.
The video appears to be filmed in an open area of a Housing Development Board (HDB) block.
Within hours of the report, the police identified Ezekiel and arrested him at a flat on York Hill.
More Weapons Discovered
You may think that owning a samurai sword is bizarre enough, but the police found several more weapons at Ezekiel’s home.
The police found a butterfly knife, a flick knife and a knuckle duster when they raided his home.
They seized the weapons.
That’s not all, though.
Besides the extensive collection of weapons, the police also discovered and seized drug paraphernalia during their investigation.
Charged in Court
On 30 October, Ezekiel was handed one charge of possessing a knuckle duster without lawful purpose.
He was remanded and appeared in court via video link.
His outfit was definitely not one for the fashion runway.
After all, he was draped simply in a blanket or towel.
The prosecution asked for an adjournment for investigations to be completed.
They also requested a bail of $15,000 to be offered to Ezekiel.
He will return to court in November.
When asked if he had anything to say for himself, Ezekiel kept asking about his identity card.
He could be jailed for up to five years and given at least six strokes of the cane if convicted under the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act as a first offender.
Of course, repeated offenders face a harsher punishment.
Besides being given at least six strokes of the cane, a repeat offender can be jailed between two and eight years.
In the news release, the SPF mentioned that the Central Narcotics Bureau is investigating the drug-related offences.
SPF added, “The Police have zero tolerance towards such brazen acts and will not hesitate to act against those who blatantly disregard the law.”
Another Similar Incident
It seems like Ezekiel isn’t the only one illegally owning a samurai sword.
Another similar incident involving a 38-year-old man occurred on 29 October.
He was arrested for allegedly attacking and injuring two police officers with a stun device.
For context, stun devices are illegal in Singapore.
At about 2.50 am, two traffic police officers were patrolling Victoria Street when they spotted a speeding car.
The police said that when they signalled for the man to pull over, he stopped along the second lane of the road instead.
Furthermore, when asked to provide his identity card and driving licence, the man only provided his NRIC.
The police directed him to move his car to the side of the road for further investigation.
Though he initially complied, he reportedly suddenly “dashed out of his car” and fled.
The police said that he seemed to have a “black object resembling the handle of a weapon” on him.
The officers gave chase and caught up to him at a back alley.
However, the man allegedly pulled out a stun device and tased the officers repeatedly.
Fortunately, the officers eventually managed to arrest the man with the help of a passer-by.
Besides the stun gun, a samurai sword, two knuckle dusters, a chopper and a dagger were discovered and seized from the man.
In addition, the police uncovered various drug paraphernalia and controlled drugs as well.
He will be charged on 30 October for voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from discharging his duty, possession of offensive weapons, drug trafficking and driving under the influence of drugs.
Here’s a simplified summary of the South Korea martial law that even a 5-year-old would understand:
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