{"id":76757,"date":"2026-08-16T00:34:03","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T16:34:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=76757"},"modified":"2026-08-16T00:34:03","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T16:34:03","slug":"the-failed-shooting-at-holland-village-and-the-gunman-who-vanished","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=76757","title":{"rendered":"The failed shooting at Holland Village, and the gunman who vanished"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<h2>MS Unsolved: What happened to the alleged armed robber whose gun misfired in 1994<\/h2>\n<p><em>MS Unsolved is a series that hopes to raise awareness of cold cases in Singapore and generate new leads. If you have any information on the cases, reach out to MS News or the police.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u2013<\/p>\n<p>It was a warm Monday morning in Holland Village.<\/p>\n<p>At about 9.30am on 15th August 1994, 34-year-old sub-contractor Koh Lai Teck was preparing to drive away from a carpark behind Block 12, Holland Avenue.<\/p>\n<p>He probably expected an ordinary morning.<\/p>\n<p>What happened next unfolded in a matter of seconds.<\/p>\n<p>A motorcyclist pulled up beside Koh\u2019s Mercedes-Benz car, pointed a handgun at his head and ordered him not to move.<\/p>\n<p>Then he pulled the trigger.<\/p>\n<p>Nothing happened.<\/p>\n<p>The gun had misfired.<\/p>\n<p>\n\t\t<iframe id=\"answers-client-6a80906e67567\" class=\"answers-client\" src=\"\" height=\"500\" loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754874\" style=\"width: 485px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754874\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754874 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193649.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"475\" height=\"745\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193649.png 475w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193649-383x600.png 383w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193649-96x150.png 96w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 475px) 100vw, 475px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 475px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 475\/745;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754874\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Mr Koh, pictured at the scene. Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h3>A victim fights back<\/h3>\n<p>This gave Koh the chance to react. He flung open his car door, knocking the gunman and his motorcycle to the ground. Koh got out of the car and wrestled with the attacker over the weapon.<\/p>\n<p>He then made a move that almost cost him his life.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know it was very risky, but at that time, all I could think of was grabbing his gun,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/straitstimes19940816-1.2.8.5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">he told The Straits Times (ST)<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As the two grappled, the gunman struck Koh twice on the head and once on the chest with the gun. He eventually broke free and <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/lhzb19940816-1.2.9.2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">fled towards Lorong Liput, abandoning his motorcycle<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754873\" style=\"width: 969px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754873\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754873 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193800.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"959\" height=\"461\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193800.png 959w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193800-600x288.png 600w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-193800-150x72.png 150w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 959px) 100vw, 959px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 959px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 959\/461;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754873\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>By the time police arrived, the gunman had vanished, but he had left behind several clues. Namely, his Malaysian-registered motorcycle, two live bullets and, later, a grey jacket found on a fence nearby.<\/p>\n<p>What followed was a major manhunt through Holland Village: more than 50 officers, including Special Operations Command troopers in bulletproof vests carrying assault rifles, combed the area for over an hour.<\/p>\n<p>They conducted house-to-house searches as residents and shoppers gathered behind the police cordon. Despite the scale of the operation, the gunman was nowhere to be found.<\/p>\n<h3>A gunman who never got the chance to fire<\/h3>\n<p>At the time, police were not even certain what the gunman\u2019s motive had been.<\/p>\n<p>Koh was wearing a Rolex worth about S$6,000 at the time and had around S$100 on him. And he was driving a 10-year-old Mercedes-Benz, making robbery one possible explanation.<\/p>\n<p>Yet the circumstances did not fit neatly into a typical robbery.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754876\" style=\"width: 682px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754876\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754876 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-200420.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"672\" height=\"851\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-200420.png 672w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-200420-474x600.png 474w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-200420-118x150.png 118w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 672px) 100vw, 672px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 672px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 672\/851;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754876\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>According to a police source quoted by The New Paper, <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/page\/newpaper19940816-1.1.12\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the gunman had not asked Koh for his money or Rolex before pulling the trigger<\/a>. This led investigators to consider whether the attack was actually something more sinister.<\/p>\n<p>Koh himself believed the man had wanted his Rolex, saying that he could think of no other reason for the attack. He also told reporters that he did not know the gunman and had no enemies.<\/p>\n<p>For his family, the incident carried an even more frightening possibility.<\/p>\n<p>Koh\u2019s wife, Madam Loy, had given birth to their baby girl on National Day that year. Koh had left home that morning intending to meet some friends before returning to pick his wife and newborn up for a check-up.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-754880 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-204723.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"316\" height=\"451\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-204723.png 316w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-204723-105x150.png 105w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 316px) 100vw, 316px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 316px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 316\/451;\"\/><\/p>\n<p>She later reflected that she had been lucky not to have been in the car with their baby that morning.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToday was the first time I left home since I had the baby,\u201d she told ST.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf the man had tried to rob us while the baby and I were in the car, I would have been terrified, so in that way I suppose we were lucky.\u201d<\/p>\n<h3>The gunman leaves behind more than a motorcycle<\/h3>\n<p>The clues left behind gave investigators something to work with. However, it was not enough to immediately identify the man.<\/p>\n<p>The gunman was described as a <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/straitstimes19940816-1.2.8.5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Chinese man in his early 30s, around 1.6m tall, stout and dark<\/a>. Police believed he was still armed when he escaped.<\/p>\n<p>For weeks, however, that description was all investigators had publicly.<\/p>\n<p>Then, in October, <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/straitstimes19941001-1.2.37.17.1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">police released a photofit<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754877\" style=\"width: 503px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754877\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754877 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-201856.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"493\" height=\"650\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-201856.png 493w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-201856-455x600.png 455w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-201856-114x150.png 114w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 493px) 100vw, 493px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 493px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 493\/650;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754877\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>ST reported on 1st October 1994 that the photofit showed the man wanted in connection with the apparent robbery attempt.<\/p>\n<p>Eventually, investigators put a name to the face. Chan Sin Chin.<\/p>\n<h3>A name on Singapore\u2019s Most Wanted list<\/h3>\n<p>Chan also had <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/straitstimes19980103-1.2.42.14?qt=holland,%20village,%20gun&amp;q=holland%20village%20gun\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">several aliases, including Chan Sin Chai, Ai Leong, Siau Liang and Kulai Leong<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>A 1996 Straits Times report identified him as a 25-year-old Malaysian from Kulai, Johor. His last known address was reportedly in Johor, Malaysia.<\/p>\n<p>Chan was now wanted for attempted use of a firearm and the alleged robbery attempt.<\/p>\n<p>He was not simply another name on a police wanted list.<\/p>\n<p>By September 1996, he had become one of Singapore\u2019s Nine Most Wanted Men.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754884\" style=\"width: 301px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754884\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754884 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-211651.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"291\" height=\"798\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-211651.png 291w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-211651-219x600.png 219w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-211651-55x150.png 55w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 291px) 100vw, 291px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 291px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 291\/798;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754884\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>That month, police put their list of wanted criminals on the Internet to reach people beyond Singapore. In particular, those in neighbouring countries who might have information about the suspects.<\/p>\n<p>Chan was the most recent addition to the list.<\/p>\n<p>Two years later, he was still there.<\/p>\n<p>A January 1998 report on Singapore\u2019s Most Wanted described the list as being reserved for suspects who had allegedly committed capital or otherwise very serious offences and who police believed could pose a threat to the community.<\/p>\n<p>One CID officer described those on the list as the department\u2019s \u201cmost dangerous and desperate suspects\u201d.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754879\" style=\"width: 401px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754879\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754879 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-204415.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"391\" height=\"486\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-204415.png 391w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-204415-121x150.png 121w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 391px) 100vw, 391px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 391px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 391\/486;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754879\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Chan remained among them, wanted for the arms offence dating back to 1994.<\/p>\n<h3>Where did Chan Sin Chin go?<\/h3>\n<p>The case is hard to shake precisely because of what was left behind.<\/p>\n<p>The police had a victim who survived a gun attack, eyewitnesses who saw the struggle, a motorcycle abandoned at the scene, two live bullets, clothing believed to belong to the gunman and eventually a name, aliases and a last known address in Johor.<\/p>\n<p>Yet the man accused of pointing a gun at Koh\u2019s head remained at large.<\/p>\n<p>The most chilling part of the case is perhaps how differently that morning could have ended.<\/p>\n<p>Koh escaped a shooting because the gun misfired. He used the brief opportunity to slam his car door into the gunman and fight back.<\/p>\n<p>That decision left him injured, but alive.<\/p>\n<p>His attacker escaped.<\/p>\n<p>More than 3 decades later, there is no clear answer as to what happened to Chan Sin Chin after he disappeared from Holland Village.<\/p>\n<p>What remains is a strange trail of evidence from one August morning.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_754881\" style=\"width: 804px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-754881\" class=\"size-full wp-image-754881 lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-205405.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"794\" height=\"301\" srcset=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-205405.png 794w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-205405-600x227.png 600w, https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Screenshot-2026-08-14-205405-150x57.png 150w\" data-sizes=\"(max-width: 794px) 100vw, 794px\" style=\"--smush-placeholder-width: 794px; --smush-placeholder-aspect-ratio: 794\/301;\"\/><\/p>\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-754881\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Source: NewspaperSG<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Somewhere between the gun that didn\u2019t fire and the man who vanished, one of Singapore\u2019s longest-running wanted-person mysteries quietly took hold.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Also read: <a href=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/mcdonalds-boys-unsolved\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">MS Unsolved: Were the 2 McDonald\u2019s boys who \u2018disappeared\u2019 in S\u2019pore kidnapped by a trusted adult?<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"B5sg1pTnUf\">\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/mcdonalds-boys-unsolved\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">MS Unsolved: Were the 2 McDonald\u2019s boys who \u2018disappeared\u2019 in S\u2019pore kidnapped by a trusted adult?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"\u201cMS Unsolved: Were the 2 McDonald\u2019s boys who \u2018disappeared\u2019 in S\u2019pore kidnapped by a trusted adult?\u201d \u2014 MS News - Independent News For Singaporeans\" src=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/mcdonalds-boys-unsolved\/embed\/#?secret=vWfbINmd2x#?secret=B5sg1pTnUf\" data-secret=\"B5sg1pTnUf\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-entry\">\n<p><em>Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/chan-sin-chin-holland-village-gun\/mailto:news@mustsharenews.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">news@mustsharenews.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Featured image adapted from <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/straitstimes19940816-1.2.8.5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NewspaperSG<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/eresources.nlb.gov.sg\/newspapers\/digitised\/article\/stoverseas19960907-1.2.7.10?qt=holland,%20village,%20gun&amp;q=holland%20village%20gun\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">NewspaperSG<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- CONTENT END 1 --><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script id=\"facebook-js\" src=\"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js?ver=7.0.2#xfbml=1&#038;version=v3.2\"><\/script><script>\n!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\nn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\nif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\nn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\nt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\ns.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\nfbq('init', '1213643350275810');\nfbq('track', 'PageView');\n<\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<center><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/mustsharenews.com\/chan-sin-chin-holland-village-gun\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Read Full Article At Source <\/a><br \/>\n<center\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>MS Unsolved: What happened to the alleged armed robber whose gun misfired in 1994 MS Unsolved is a series that hopes to raise awareness of&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":76758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2611],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-76757","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-buzz-headlines","wpcat-2611-id"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76757","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=76757"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76757\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/76758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=76757"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=76757"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=76757"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}