SINGAPORE - A 32-year-old man, who was holding a karambit knife when he punched another man at Orchard Towers in 2019, has been sentenced to life imprisonment and 12 strokes of the cane for murder.

Tan Sen Yang was the only one in a group of seven who was armed with a weapon during the fight.

On April 25, a High Court judge found him guilty of murdering Mr Satheesh Noel Gobidass, 31, at about 6.25am on July 2, 2019.

Justice Aedit Abdullah said the prosecution has proved its case against Tan beyond a reasonable doubt, despite the “spirited defence” put up by his lawyers.

The judge rejected defence arguments that there was sufficient doubt over whether Tan was the one who had inflicted the fatal stab wound on the victim’s neck.

Tan’s lawyers had argued that another member of his group, Mr Chan Jia Xing, was captured on surveillance footage with a black item in his hand.

But the judge concluded that the object was probably an e-cigarette, as Mr Chan was seen bringing it to his mouth at one point.

The defence had also argued that Mr Satheesh suffered eight wounds despite Tan punching him three times. But Justice Abdullah noted that the fight was a dynamic situation where the victim was moving around, and one punching motion could have caused more than one wound.

Justice Abdullah also rejected defence arguments that Tan should be convicted of the lesser offence of culpable homicide because he had mental conditions that diminished his responsibility for his acts.

The judge was not satisfied that Tan’s adjustment disorder and alcohol-use disorder had impaired his mental responsibility, noting that there was no contributory link between the conditions and his offence.

After Tan was convicted, the prosecution told the court that it was not asking for the death penalty. Deputy Public Prosecutor Hay Hung Chun sought life imprisonment and at least 15 strokes of the cane, citing a 2022 case where a man slashed a jogger at Punggol Field in a random attack on May 10, 2020.

Defence counsel Teo Choo Kee asked for at least 12 strokes of the cane.

On July 2, 2019, Tan and his friends had gone to the Naughty Girl Club in Orchard Towers at about 5.25am.

At about 6.20am, his group got into a dispute with another group of patrons, which included Mr Muhammad Fairus Muhammad Ali.

Security officers intervened as the two groups shouted secret society slogans. 

Tan could be seen waving a karambit knife in the surveillance footage. One of the security officers, Mr B. Barathkrishnan, suffered a cut on his finger. As the two groups continued scuffling, Mr Fairus’ face was slashed.

After security officers separated the two groups, Tan and his friends took a lift to the ground floor.

As they were about to exit Orchard Towers, Mr Satheesh, an acquaintance of Mr Fairus, took the escalator down alone and confronted Tan’s group.

In the ensuing fight, Tan punched Mr Satheesh in the face three times while holding the knife. Tan’s companions punched and kicked the victim before they fled the scene.

When Tan later visited a friend, he learnt that the victim had died and was advised to surrender. He contacted the police to do so.

At about 2.35pm that day, officers arrested him near the Toa Payoh South Community Club.

Tan and the six others were initially charged with murder. The charges against the others were later reduced to less serious offences for the respective roles they played.

Mr Loo Boon Chong was given five months’ jail for disposing of Tan’s T-shirt.

Ms Natalie Siow Yu Zhen was sentenced to five months’ jail for assault and being in the company of someone in possession of a weapon.

Mr Joel Tan Yun Sheng was jailed for four weeks for assault.

Mr Ang Da Yuan was sentenced to eight months’ jail and six strokes of the cane for assault and being in the company of Tan.

Mr Chan Jia Xing was given a conditional warning for being in the company of Tan. A conditional warning does not amount to a conviction and does not leave a criminal record.

Tan Hong Sheng was sentenced to four years and nine months’ jail with 12 strokes of the cane for being in the company of Tan and on two unrelated rioting charges.

Tan Sen Yang had also faced two charges relating to the injuries suffered by Mr Barathkrishnan and Mr Fairus. These were withdrawn following his murder conviction.