The most horrific attack in recent years in Sg

it has been years since such cases happen in Singapore...



THE vicious attack was carefully planned.

And when it was over, blood flowed as Mr Zainal Zainal, 46, lay dead from 78 wounds, mostly slashes and stabs, in what was described as 'the most horrific gang killing in recent years'.
Six men, part of a gang that carried out the attack at Central Square on 17 Sep last year, were brought to justice yesterday.


They pleaded guilty to a reduced manslaughter charge and were sentenced seven to 10 years in jail and six to 18 strokes of the cane.
All the men were members or had links with a motorcycle gang called Onyx, while Mr Zainal is believed to have been a senior member of the Blackjack motorcycle gang.
SHOWDOWN


Deputy Public Prosecutor Shawn Ho, co-counsel with DPP Francis Ng, told the court that the six accused had got together with 10 other male gang members in Kelantan Lane soon after midnight.
They were there for a 'showdown' with the Alif motorcycle gang, which had beaten up one of their members.


But when no rival members turned up, one member from the Onyx gang suggested looking for them at their usual haunt, a nightspot at Central Square.
The gang agreed and left Kelantan Lane in two vans.
Three of the gang members were stopped and arrested after the police were alerted by a caller who saw them carrying weapons in their jackets.


All three were sentenced to four months' jail in February.
When the remaining 13 reached Magazine Road near Central Square, they were told by another member, who didn't join in the attack, that MrZainal was in the area.
DPP Ho said Mr Zainal, a technician, is believed to have been the deputy leader of the Blackjack gang, which has ties with the Alif gang.


The Onyx gang - apart from Mohamed Hishamadi, 34, who was already carrying a knife - then armed themselves with knives that were in one of the vans.
Nur Rizal Mohamed Zainul, 27, who was believed to be the mastermind, instructed the six accused and three others to stage the attack.


Nur Rizal and one accomplice remained at Magazine Road while two others stayed in the vans.
The nine attackers spotted Mr Zainal seated with his girlfriend outside a convenience store at Central Square.
Mr Zainal stood up when he saw Mohamed Hishamadi approaching him and was slashed twice in the chest by the latter.



The victim then tried to escape towards Havelock Road, pursued by the attackers.
He fell along the road and was surrounded by the gang, who attacked him repeatedly with their weapons, and with kicks and punches.
The attackers then fled the scene in the vans and returned to the flat of Mohamad Rizal, 23, in Woodlands.



Mr Zainal died at Singapore General Hospital at 2.20am.
Nur Rizal and four others are still at large. The two who drove the vans are in custody, awaiting sentencing.
The six, except for Khairul Iskandar who surrendered on 25 Sep, were arrested on 20 and 21 Sep.



ANGER AND TEARS
Yesterday, anger and tears mixed freely at the High Court when the six were convicted and sentenced.
The anger was apparent in one woman who identified herself as Mr Zainal's niece. She said: 'Ten years is too short for a life.'
With reddened eyes, she added that it has been a difficult period for the family since Mr Zainal's death.



Mohamad Rizal's family told The New Paper that they were relieved that he had avoided the gallows and also life imprisonment.
His mother, 53, a housewife, said she would like to apologise to Mr Zainal's family for what her son, the second last of six children, had done.
She said in Malay, through her second son: 'I'm really hurt and disappointed. I never imagined he would do such a thing. I want to seek forgiveness from the victim's family.'



Defence lawyers described the six accused as pawns and foot soldiers used and exploited by Nur Rizal.
They also said Mr Zainal wasn't an innocent bystander but a senior member of a motorcycle gang.
But DPP Ng said regardless of Mr Zainal's background, he wasn't involved in any gang activities that night.



Calling the attack the 'most horrific gang killing in recent years', DPP Ng said: 'Whatever his background, he didn't deserve to die the way he did.'
He asked the court for a deterrent sentence to send a clear message that lawlessness and violence will not be tolerated.


news taken from: http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,143171,00.html