Man in West Coast homicide questioned on why he didn’t escape father
Mark Tan Peng Liat outside court. Photo: Robin Choo/TODAY
SINGAPORE — Instead of putting his elderly father into a chokehold, businessman Mark Tan Peng Liat could have outrun him to escape from their heated argument, and driven off in his car parked outside their semi-detached house at West Coast Rise.
But, Tan, 30, who is on trial for allegedly killing his father, did not so, pointed out deputy public prosecutor Kumaresan Gohubalan as he called into question Tan’s version of events that fateful day in court on Thursday (Oct 13).
On Wednesday, Tan had testified that an argument concerning money arose between father and son in the master bedroom of the house on Feb 10 last year. He also claimed that his father, Tan Kok Keng, 67, had struck first, by poking him in the chest and then attempting to punch him.
Tan also said that his collection of Japanese swords was displayed around the house — including in the master bedroom hallway — and he had restrained his father as he did not want the fight to leave the bedroom, and “result in something worse”.
On Thursday, DPP Kumaresan, in his cross-examination of Tan, pointed out that Tan was 29 years old during the time of the incident, and weighed approximately 95 to 100kg, almost one a half times the weight of his father.
DPP Kumaresan also showed the courtroom photographs of the master bedroom’s hallway, pointing out that there were no swords there.
Asked about this, Tan said: “I believe I was mistaken (that) the swords are kept in the hallway… up to the time of the fight, I think swords were at the hallway.”
Asked if he knew that there were no swords at the hallway on that fateful day, Tan said he did not. Before he got married a couple of years ago, the swords were kept everywhere around the house, he testified.
DPP Kumaresan also suggested that Tan could have outrun his father, if his father had to first unsheath a sword and then give chase. “He (the elder Tan) could have fallen down…a multitude of things could have happened,” DPP Kumaresan said.
He also said that Tan knew he could escape from his father, if he was afraid that his father could reach the swords after their first grapple.
But Tan disagreed. “(I) didn’t believe (I could) successfully escape (if my father had done so),” he added.
He also disagreed with DPP Kumaresan suggested that the reason Tan held his father in a headlock and chokehold was because he was angry with him.
If Tan is found guilty of culpable homicide — not amounting to murder — he could be jailed up to 10 years, fined or caned.
