HE STABBED his drinking buddy to death, fled the scene - and was shot dead half an hour later.

The 43-year-old was shot by a policeman in an afternoon drama that unfolded right in front of commuters on a train platform at the Outram MRT station.

The man, as yet unidentified except by his nickname 'Botak', had lunged at two policemen with a knife.

The single gunshot at about 3.25pm drew screams from several commuters. Some tried to get away by running up the escalators and stairs.

Eyewitnesses told The Straits Times that the man clutched at his chest, staggered and fell face-down.

Argentinian tourist Alberto Taphanel, 47, said: 'There wasn't much blood. It was a clean shot and he went down with a long-drawn groan.'

The two policemen moved towards the body, revolvers still drawn, and one kicked the knife away.

The last time police here drew their weapons and fired on a suspect was in 2002, when a motorcycle thief charged at four officers with a knife. The man survived.

Train rides continued as usual although the police cordoned off a section of the station near where the body lay for a couple of hours.

Curious commuters who came through the station thought at first that the policemen and detectives gathered there were taking part in a drill.

They did not know that five minutes away, another team of officers was swarming a hawker centre at Block 1, Jalan Kukoh.

Amid the overturned beer mugs and bloodied tables lay the body of 52-year-old Tan Ah Chang.

The odd-job worker, nicknamed 'Eh Gao' (or mute in Hokkien) by his friends, had been stabbed in the stomach. His killer left behind a knife sheath.

Mr Tan had been drinking beer since about 10am, with three other men and a woman.

One of the men, electrician Eric Leong, said that the hawker centre was their usual watering hole.

Mr Leong left the group early to take a nap near the hawker centre's toilet.

He was roused from sleep by the screams of the woman in the group.

He told The Straits Times in Hokkien: 'When I got to the table, all I saw was my good friend lying there.'

He was told that the group had been joined by a man who was known to them, despite his full head of hair, as Botak.

Based on descriptions provided by witnesses, police officers spotted Botak, in a white T-shirt and black pants, at the train station platform. He was carrying a black haversack.

When they approached him, he took the knife out of the bag and charged at them. That was when one of the officers drew his revolver.

Superintendent Lau Peet Meng, the commander of Central Police Division, said his officer drew his weapon as the man was advancing towards them, knife in hand, 'in a threatening manner and at close proximity'.

A police spokesman said that the man was within 3m of the officers when he was shot.

The bullet did not exit the body and did not ricochet within the station.

Supt Lau said: 'In the circumstances, considering that he was supposed to have just killed another man, the officer had no choice but to open fire.'

Police did not release the dead man's identity by press time yesterday as his relatives had yet to be informed of his death.

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