A 69-year-old woman who lived alone had collapsed and died in her Telok Blangah flat. No one knew about it until the smell of the decaying corpse filled the hallway, which alerted her neighbours to call the police.
“No one comes to visit her even on public holidays,” said her neighbour.
The incident occurred around 10am on Wednesday (3 January) at Block 19 Telok Blangah Crescent. According to Shin Min Daily News, a putrid smell came from the rental flat, and police were later seen investigating inside the unit.
Later, the police confirmed that they were alerted to a case of unnatural death.
When the reporter arrived at the scene at about 3pm, the area which the police had been cordoned off for investigation had been removed and the police had left. Reportedly, the reporter who visited the place noticed a foul smell and followed the smell to find the above-mentioned unit.
A 75-year-old retiree known as Zheng told the reporter that the deceased was a Chinese woman who lived alone. She used to live with her elderly mother, but since her elderly mother passed away more than 10 years ago, she has been alone, and she does not see relatives or friends visiting her, even during the public holidays.
According to other neighbours, they had noticed a foul smell as early as Tuesday (2 January), but they didn’t take it seriously initially, thinking the smell came from rotten food or meat.
It wasn’t until the smell became stronger that the neighbours decided to alert the police about it.
When responding to queries, the police confirmed that they were alerted to a case in which a 69-year-old woman was found lying in the unit and was pronounced dead on the spot.
Based on preliminary investigations, the police ruled out the possibility of homicide and the case is still under investigation.
