Shin Min Daily News reported that a 59-year-old man was found dead at a void deck of Block 257 Serangoon Central Drive on Monday (16 Jan 2023). The man was already dead for two days before a cleaner reported it.
The cleaner said he saw the man lying at the void deck last Saturday (14 Jan) but thought he was sleeping. The cleaner only sounded the alarm when he detected a foul stench. The cleaner said the man frequently spent the night at that particular secluded corner of the void deck.
The man’s body was found on a mattress, with a pair of slippers at the side. There was also a pool of blood on the ground. A small bag and a plastic bag were found at the scene.
Police have ruled out foul play, and investigations are ongoing.
The cleaner told reporters that the deceased would often loiter at the void deck. When he started work on Monday morning, he smelled something rotting when he walked past the man. He then informed his employer, who in turn called the police.
A resident also told reporters that he had seen the man lying down in the area a few days earlier, and wanted to buy him food. However, he looked as if he was asleep, so the resident did not want to disturb him.
MP Seah: Not my resident
When interviewed by The Straits Times, Seah Kian Peng, who is the MP of the area, said the dead man was not his resident. Details of the man remain unknown.
However, the MP did acknowledge that there is “a very small number” of rough sleepers in his constituency. They often have their own homes but opt to sleep on the streets for various reasons, such as family disputes, he said.
The MP gave an example of a woman who chooses to sleep rough in Serangoon as it is nearer to her workplace, even though she has a home.
MP Seah added that his grassroots leaders will try to engage these people and offer help if needed. They also work with social service offices and other government agencies to follow up on these cases, he claimed.
A couple also told The Straits Times that they saw the man sleeping at the void deck of the block almost every night for the past two weeks before he was found dead.
On Jan 8, another elderly was found dead in her one-room rental flat in Aljunied. Similarly, her death was only discovered when her neighbours detected a stench.
Mr Abraham Yeo, co-founder of Homeless Hearts of Singapore, said many of those who are homeless are at higher risk of heart and other medical problems, given their poverty, poor health and nutrition. He said some of the homeless folk “don’t want to go to a hospital (when they are ill) as they see it as a place to die. Others may be worried they cannot afford the hospital bills”.
Mr Gilbert Goh, who runs his own charity movement with the homeless and needy families at rental flats, claims that there are close to a hundred elderlies dying alone each year, and neighbours will only be aware of the death until a foul smell emerges.
He added that it is a strange phenomenon by itself, and nothing much is done to arrest the sad spectacle, which will be a common occurrence in the near future as our society is ageing rapidly.
