SINGAPORE: A 54-year-old man was found dead in rental flat in Serangoon after neighbours reported a pungent stench in the area to the police.
When the police visited the unit at Block 223A Serangoon Avenue 4 around 7.30pm on Monday (17 Apr), they discovered a man lying motionless on the ground. The middle-aged man was pronounced dead at the scene.
Although the case has been classified as an unnatural death, preliminary investigations suggest that there was no foul play involved.
A neighbour told Channel 8 news that the police was first called to investigate an unbearable stench on Monday morning. They reportedly did not find anything suspicious and left the scene.
But when the strong smell was still present at 7pm, neighbours called the police again. The police found that the unit was locked and discovered the deceased man after engaging a locksmith to open the door.
Another neighbour, who lives on a higher floor, told the Chinese channel that she took the elevator a few days ago and when the elevator opened on the floor where the incident occurred, she smelled “salted fish” but didn’t think much of it at the time.
Other neighbours suggested that the deceased was a hoarder who stuffed his unit with items like bags, clothes, wires, radios, etc. They added that the man didn’t like to chat with neighbors, but he would still say hello when they met.
According to one neighbour, the late Singaporean moved to the rental unit with a friend around the year 2009. But a few years ago, his friend had a heart attack and died in the unit, leaving the deceased to live alone.
The neighbour added that he has never seen anyone who looked like a family member visiting the man.
While the residents of the Serangoon block did not interact much with the man who was found dead, they are grieving his loss. One neighbour who did not have much contact with him lit incense at his doorstep with the hope that the man would have a good journey in the afterlife.
Police investigations are ongoing.