Man wielding samurai sword on MRT train arrested

A man on Monday wielded a samurai sword on board an MRT train, half-dressed in the attire of a Japanese martial art exponent.

He jumped the fare gate, boarded the train at Paya Lebar station, and alighted at City Hall, said the police in a statement on Monday.

He was eventually arrested at 1.16pm in Victoria Street near Bugis station, after a chase by police officers.

Police got a call for help at 12.46pm from MRT staff at Paya Lebar station.

When officers boarded the train travelling towards City Hall, "a man was found in possession of a sword", the statement said.

The officers kept the man away from other commuters "so as not to aggravate the situation while they continued to monitor the subject and followed him closely when he alighted at City Hall MRT station", it added.

The police are continuing their investigations. Eyewitnesses said the man, with frizzy shoulder-length hair and wearing a Hard Rock Cafe T-shirt, was mumbling to himself.

Media manager Kwok Kar Wai, 36, saw him outside Raffles City Shopping Centre waiting at the traffic light to cross the road towards Raffles Hotel. He seemed to be "taking a walk at a very relaxed pace", despite being tailed by "four or five" policemen, she said.

Event manager Kim Bomhae, 33, later saw him being nabbed in Victoria Street near Jalan Pinang, after a foot chase. Ms Kim, who works at an office overlooking the street, said: "At first we heard a man growling, and the noise grew louder. It took some time for the police to handcuff him because he put up a fight.

"From the waist up he looked like a rocker, but from the waist down, he looked like a samurai."

Eyewitnesses said he had also boarded a northbound train at City Hall and alighted at Dhoby Ghaut station.

Said corporate communications manager Ow Yong Weng Leong, 33: "Three policemen were following him and he shouted at them to stop following him, even pushing them in the chest. Then as the train moved off, he took out his sword. From that moment, everybody retreated."

He added: "At first we did not know whether he was for real or going for a cosplay event, but the moment we saw the blade it did not look like a toy."

An SMRT spokesman said: "Passenger safety is our priority and we do not tolerate abhorrent behaviour nor allow offensive weapons to be brought on our trains."

By law, samurai swords are allowed into the country only with the permission of the immigration authorities, and they must be inspected by the police before an import licence is issued.

The swords must be kept at home by their owners and not be carried in any public place unless they have a lawful reason.

The man is being probed under Section 7(1)(a) of the Corrosive and Explosive Substances and Offensive Weapons Act. If charged and convicted, he faces a jail term of up to five years and mandatory caning of at least six strokes.

waltsim@sph.com.sg

Get a copy of The Straits Times or go to straitstimes.com for more stories.

[[nid:68358]]