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Kovan double murders

SOLVED2013Hillside Drive / Kovan MRT station, Singapore3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On the afternoon of 10 July 2013, commuters at Kovan MRT station in Singapore witnessed a silver Toyota Camry dragging the body of a man face-down beneath it, leaving a trail of blood. The body, later identified as that of 42-year-old Tan Chee Heong, was dislodged outside the station after roughly 1 km of dragging. Police followed the blood trail to a house on Hillside Drive, where they found the body of Chee Heong's 67-year-old father, Tan Boon Sin, with 27 knife wounds. Chee Heong had sustained 20 stab and incised wounds. Both scenes were cordoned off for more than eight hours amid heavy traffic disruption and public attention.

Eyewitnesses, including a domestic helper named Salamah and a caretaker named Anthony Fabian, saw a man flee the house, get into a car, and drive over Chee Heong's body. Investigators identified the elder victim's car and, by the next day, classified the deaths as murder. The suspect was arrested on 12 July 2013 at a restaurant in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, by Royal Malaysia Police officers, and was identified as Senior Staff Sergeant Iskandar bin Rahmat, a 34-year-old Singapore Police Force investigation officer based in the Bedok Police Division. He was extradited to Singapore on 13 July and charged with murder on 15 July 2013. The case drew significant public and political attention because the accused was a serving police officer; then-Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean and Police Commissioner Ng Joo Hee both addressed the matter publicly, emphasizing zero tolerance for officer misconduct.

At trial, which began on 20 October 2015 before Justice Tay Yong Kwang in the High Court, forensic pathologist Dr Gilbert Lau testified about the extensive stab and incised wounds on both victims. Iskandar, who faced financial difficulties including impending bankruptcy, testified that he had planned to con Tan Boon Sin into withdrawing valuables under a false pretext, and that the killings occurred during a "sudden fight" and in self-defence after his plan was discovered. The prosecution argued the killings were intentional, pointing to the number and location of wounds and to bloodstained sock prints found in a linear pattern suggesting deliberate searching after the first killing. On 4 December 2015, Justice Tay convicted Iskandar of murder under Section 300(a) of the Penal Code and sentenced him to death, rejecting his defences of self-defence and sudden fight.

Iskandar's appeal, which added a new defence of diminished responsibility, was dismissed by the Court of Appeal on 3 February 2017. His clemency petition, filed in January 2018 alongside a separate petition by his family, was dismissed by President Halimah Yacob in July 2019 on Cabinet advice. Iskandar separately filed a complaint against his original defence lawyers alleging professional misconduct; this was dismissed by the Law Society of Singapore in June 2019, and his appeal against that decision was dismissed by the High Court, with judgment released on 28 February 2020. Iskandar was hanged on 5 February 2025 following the exhaustion of his legal avenues.

Key facts

Victims
Tan Chee Heong, Tan Boon Sin
Date
2013
Location
Hillside Drive / Kovan MRT station, Singapore
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 2013-07-10

    Tan Boon Sin and Tan Chee Heong are killed at 14J Hillside Drive; Chee Heong's body is dragged under a car and found near Kovan MRT station.

  2. 2013-07-11

    Police classify the deaths as murder after the victims' car is found parked in Eunos.

  3. 2013-07-12

    Iskandar bin Rahmat is arrested in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, by Royal Malaysia Police officers.

  4. 2013-07-13

    Iskandar is extradited to Singapore.

  5. 2013-07-15

    Iskandar is charged in the State Courts of Singapore with the murders of Tan Boon Sin and Tan Chee Heong.

  6. 2013-07-16

    Funeral and cremation of Tan Boon Sin and Tan Chee Heong take place at Mandai Crematorium.

  7. 2013-07-26

    Iskandar is remanded at Changi Prison Complex Medical Centre for psychiatric evaluation.

  8. 2015-10-20

    Kovan double murder trial begins in the High Court before Justice Tay Yong Kwang.

  9. 2015-11-23

    Closing submissions are made by prosecution and defence.

  10. 2015-12-04

    Justice Tay Yong Kwang convicts Iskandar of murder and imposes the mandatory death sentence.

  11. 2016-10-26

    Iskandar's appeal is heard before the Court of Appeal.

  12. 2017-02-03

    The Court of Appeal unanimously dismisses Iskandar's appeal and upholds the death sentence.

  13. 2018-01

    Iskandar files a clemency petition with the President of Singapore.

  14. 2019-06

    The Law Society of Singapore dismisses Iskandar's complaint against his former defence lawyers.

  15. 2019-07

    President Halimah Yacob, on Cabinet advice, dismisses Iskandar's clemency petition.

  16. 2019-10

    The High Court dismisses Iskandar's appeal against the Law Society's decision.

  17. 2020-02-28

    The High Court's judgment on the legal-misconduct appeal is released.

  18. 2025-02-05

    Iskandar bin Rahmat is hanged in Singapore.

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People

  • Iskandar bin Rahmat

    CONVICTED

    Former Singapore Police Force senior staff sergeant convicted of murdering Tan Boon Sin and Tan Chee Heong; sentenced to death on 4 December 2015, appeal dismissed 2017, clemency denied 2019, executed 5 February 2025.

    citation on file

  • Tan Chee Heong

    VICTIM

    42-year-old son of Tan Boon Sin, killed on 10 July 2013; his body was dragged under a car for approximately 1 km.

    citation on file

  • Tan Boon Sin

    VICTIM

    67-year-old car workshop owner killed at his home on Hillside Drive, Singapore, on 10 July 2013.

    citation on file

Places

Hillside Drive / Kovan MRT station, Singapore

1.3601, 103.8862

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On 10 July 2013, Tan Boon Sin, 67, and his son Tan Chee Heong, 42, were fatally stabbed at their Hillside Drive home in Singapore; the younger victim's body was dragged for about 1 km under a car and dislodged outside Kovan MRT station. Off-duty senior police officer Iskandar bin Rahmat was arrested in Malaysia two days later, convicted of murder in 2015, and hanged in Singapore on 5 February 2025 after his appeals and clemency petition failed.
Where did the murders happen?
Hillside Drive / Kovan MRT station, Singapore.
Who was convicted?
Iskandar bin Rahmat (Former Singapore Police Force senior staff sergeant convicted of murdering Tan Boon Sin and Tan Chee Heong; sentenced to death on 4 December 2015, appeal dismissed 2017, clemency denied 2019, executed 5 February 2025.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.

Sources

  1. Kovan double murderswikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. Father and son found dead in Kovannews · straitstimes.com · 2026-07-07
  3. Kovan double bodies case: alleged murder trialnews · todayonline.com · 2026-07-07
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