Kovan double murders
The Kovan double murders was a double murder case that occurred on 10 July 2013 at 14J Hillside Drive, Singapore. The murders were committed in the home of one of the victims, 67-year-old Tan Boon Sin. The other is his 42-year-old son, Tan Chee Heong, whose body was dragged for 1 km, under a car driven by the killer before being dislodged outside Kovan MRT station. Iskandar bin Rahmat, a senior staff sergeant policeman, was arrested and tried for the murders, and was condemned to hang. Following the dismissal of all his appeals, Iskandar was hanged on 5 February 2025.
Murders
Incident at Kovan MRT Station
On the afternoon of 10 July 2013, commuters at Kovan MRT station witnessed a silver Toyota Camry driving past, with the body of a man being dragged face-down under the car itself, with his belt stuck to the underside of the car and a trail of blood following it. Seeing this, about 15 to 20 cars honked at it to stop but to no avail. It was only when the car drove past the MRT station then the body was completely dislodged outside the station. Police were contacted and the body was later found to have head injuries and neck injuries. There were also a total of 20 stab wounds found on the body, 17 of them were mainly at the head, neck and chest.Discovery of the second victim and eyewitness accounts
The police followed the blood trail, which stretched over 1 km and ended outside a house in Hillside Drive. The police were greeted by another corpse, that of an elderly man with a total of 27 knife wounds on his body, mostly at his head, neck, and chest. There were sock prints found in a linear path, stained in blood. A lane along Upper Serangoon Road and roads leading to Hillside Drive were closed by the police, leading to a massive traffic jam. Crowds also gathered around the house and where the first body was found. Both places were cordoned off for more than eight hours.Before the sighting at Kovan MRT station, there was an eyewitness – Salamah, a 28-year-old domestic helper from a neighbour's house – who earlier saw the younger victim, who was said to be the elderly man's son, clutching his bleeding neck wound and collapsing in front of the house. She also claimed she saw another man running out of the house and get into a silver car to make his escape, which ran over the man's body and caused it to be dragged under the car, culminating into the scene that horrified members of the public at the MRT station. Anthony Fabian, a 56-year-old caretaker of a nearby vacant, disused school building, also saw the suspected killer moving the car over the younger victim's body and dragging it under the car; he claimed that after seeing this, he tried to shout at the driver to alert him but failed to catch up. These two people would become the prosecution's witnesses in the murder trial of the suspected Kovan double killer.
The victims
The next day, the Toyota Camry, which belonged to the older victim, was found parked outside an apartment in Eunos. By then, the police had classified the case as murder, and established the identities of the victims. The older victim was 67-year-old Tan Boon Sin, while the younger victim found at Kovan MRT Station was his 42-year-old elder son Tan Chee Heong.According to his family, friends, colleagues and neighbours, Boon Sin was a very nice and hard-working person, a caring employer to his co-workers, and a kind, jovial, and even-tempered man who was close to his wife and three children and never smoked or gambled. Boon Sin's widow also said that her husband had never once resorted to violence even during the couple's arguments, and was someone she could trust her life with. A Malaysian employee of Boon Sin's car workshop recalled the kindness his late employer showed him when he handed him his six months' worth of salary even when he was not working to take care of his ailing wife in Malaysia. As for Chee Heong, he was said to be a university graduate and owner of an electronics business married with two sons, both aged 10 and 3 respectively at the time of his death. Chee Heong was described as a responsible family man to his wife and sons, and also a filial son to his parents.
The investigations also revealed that Boon Sin was last seen alive at around 1 pm that afternoon, according to an employee who told police that the older victim had told him he had to leave and that he had reportedly withdrawn some items from the safe deposit box. By then, there were speculations over the motive behind the murder by the media, including a possible business dispute, but Boon Sin's car workshop business was strong and healthy, which dismissively refuted this particular theory.
Arrest of the suspect
On 12 July 2013, the suspect was discovered to be eating and then arrested at Restoran Singgah Selalu in Danga Bay, Johor Bahru, Malaysia by plainclothes police officers from the Royal Malaysia Police. Investigations by the Singapore Police Force had established that the suspect was a 34-year-old police officer, Senior Staff Sergeant Iskandar bin Rahmat from the SPF in the Bedok Police Division. This information was revealed only after Iskandar was brought back to Singapore. Iskandar had applied for a day's leave on the day of the murders from his supervisor and at 11 pm on the night itself, Iskandar had left Singapore into Johor, Malaysia via the Causeway on a scooter. Iskandar and some of the RMP officers involved were regulars of the seafood restaurant, which was a popular eating spot for Singaporeans who came into Malaysia across the Woodlands Checkpoint.Upon receiving the news of the suspect's arrest, then-Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean thanked the RMP, saying this was "an excellent example of the close and deeply valued partnership the law enforcement agencies of both countries have built over many decades".
Extradition and charges: Reactions to arrest
Soon after his arrest, Iskandar was extradited back to Singapore on 13 July, and two days later, he was charged in the State Courts of Singapore for the murders of the father and son, Tan Boon Sin and Tan Chee Heong. By then, the DPM Teo Chee Hean and Police Commissioner Ng Joo Hee had addressed the public and reporters about his arrest in a press conference, and for the first time, they revealed Iskandar's identity. This revelation brought a shock to all Singaporeans, including former police officers, MPs and netizens, that a senior policeman was involved in the double deaths at Kovan.Not only did Teo offer his condolences to the bereaved families of the victims, he also expressed his shock over the first time when he heard that the suspect was a senior policeman, and his actions had tarnished the reputation of the Singapore Police Force. Teo also reiterated that there is zero tolerance for police officers who broke the law and his confidence that justice will be impartially served and asked the Police Commissioner to tell every police officer to perform their duties diligently to maintain the trust between the public and the police.
Ng similarly stated that the identity of the suspect as a policeman made the investigating officers more resolved to solve the case. He stated in the press conference that it was painful to discover that a policeman was involved, and they would investigate why a policeman who was sworn to fulfil his duty to uphold the law had broken it "in the most grievous way". He also acknowledged that due to the actions of Iskandar, there would be a public outcry, critically questioning the integrity and quality of the police force, but he stated that they would take every criticism in their own stride. He said that they will "prosecute him to the greatest and maximum extent", and will ensure that they will not allow the tragedy to cause the public to lose their trust in the police.
Additionally, the residents at Hillside Drive expressed their relief to reporters when the suspect was arrested. Upon receiving news of Iskandar's arrest and his identity as a police officer, the bereaved Tan family demanded justice and expressed their shame that a policeman was involved in the deaths of Boon Sin and Chee Heong.
Remand of the suspect and funeral of Kovan victims
After Iskandar was charged, District judge Kessler Koh adjourned the case to the following week's Monday and Iskandar was remanded in police custody for further investigations. He was also taken to the crime scene to make an re-enactment of the alleged double murders, and was given a suspension from duty without pay by the police force. At the same time, a funeral was conducted at Teochew Funeral Parlour in Ubi for both Kovan victims and they were cremated on 16 July 2013. More than 100 relatives and friends attended the funeral, and several plainclothes policemen were deployed to inform reporters to keep their distance from the family. More visitors, including the long-time customers of Boon Sin's car workshop and the Workers' Party Members of Parliaments Sylvia Lim and Lee Li Lian also came to the funeral to pay their respects. Additionally, the police commissioner Ng Joo Hee also attended the funeral to offer his condolences to the family.According to The Straits Times, the unnamed widow of Chee Heong, was devastated and inconsolable as her husband's coffin was pushed into the cremation chambers of Mandai Crematorium, and Chee Heong's unnamed elder son, who only received news of his father's death a few days later, also teared up when it was his turn to carry his father's photo while the younger son innocently waved at the coffins and say goodbye to his father. Ong Ah Tang, the widow of Boon Sin, with whom she was married for 40 years, was too distraught to take part in the Buddhist funeral rites. 39-year-old Tan Chee Wee, the younger son of Boon Sin, tearfully made a promise to his father and brother in Hokkien that he will take on the responsibility to take care of the family, and to treat his brother's children as his own. Even the teachers and counsellors from the school of Chee Heong's elder son were sent to help the Primary Four student and his family to cope through the double loss and difficult time they suffered. The drawings made by Chee Heong's two sons were placed in the two victims' coffins before they were cremated. 49-year-old Ong Boon Kok, an uncle of Chee Heong, also thanked the police for their part in investigations and the members of the public who assisted in investigations, as well as the people who helped the family to cope through their sufferings.
On 26 July 2013, Iskandar was remanded at the Changi Prison Complex Medical Centre for psychiatric evaluation. He also reportedly told his lawyers that he wanted to claim trial to all the charges against him.