Below is a collection of some of the biggest headlines that sh00k the Singapore society since 1955, when Singapore was given self-governance (Extending the timeline from the previous version of “1970 to Present”). The headlines are categorised into Social Unrest, Politics, Accidents, Terrorism, Disasters and Others.
Please feel free to contribute and I will update accordingly.
1. January/February 1981 – Adrian Lim Murders
(Crime)
In 1981, the murders of two young children, Agnes Ng Siew Heok and Ghazali bin Marzuki, led to investigations that resulted in the capture of Singapore’s most notorious murderers to date: Adrian Lim, his wife Catherine Tan Mui Choo, and his mistress Hoe Kah Hong.
The murders had opened a complex case involving rituals of human sacrifice, drinking of human blood, as well as s3xual perversion. During the days of the trial, crowds of people gathered outside the courts, and the proceedings were closely monitored and reported by the media.
The trial turned out to be the second-longest murder trial in Singapore, lasting as it did for about eight weeks, and unveiling disturbing accounts of rites and rituals that were both cruel and perverse. The trio were ultimately sentenced to death and were hanged on 25 November 1988.
2. 14 May 1987 – McDonald’s Boys
(Crime)
Where are the missing boys? Exactly a year earlier, 12-year-old schoolboys Keh Chin Ann and Toh Hong Huat had gone missing.
Despite a huge police search, a poster campaign, a $100,000 reward from MacDonald’s and a feature on television’s Crime Watch program, nothing had emerged which would explain their disappearance.
The two Primary Six students of Owen Primary School were last seen on their way to school. The search for them was extended to Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia, but proved to be fruitless after many years.
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