18-7-2023 (SINGAPORE) The sudden death of a man has led to a perplexing mystery as his family discovered that the name they had known him by was not his real identity. The deceased man, known as Abdul Rahman Majid, was actually an unknown individual who had been living in a welfare home since 1994. The case has raised numerous unanswered questions and has become the subject of an ongoing inquiry.
The man, survived by his wife and five sons, resided with his youngest son in a rental flat in Geylang Bahru. On August 5 last year, he was found unresponsive in the living room, and his youngest son, who suffers from schizophrenia like his mother, alerted the police.
Upon arrival, the police identified the man as Mr. Abdul Rahman Majid based on the name provided under the “father” column in his youngest son’s birth certificate. The man was pronounced dead the same day, with the cause of death attributed to natural causes resulting from coronary artery disease. However, further investigations by the police revealed peculiarities in the case.
No passport or national identity card belonging to the deceased were found in the flat. The only items discovered were an old construction site pass and a UOB Plaza pass, both featuring a photo of a man named “Abdul Rahman Majid.” However, fingerprint analysis failed to match the deceased man’s prints with any records in the national database, as well as those of Malaysia and Indonesia.
Blood samples confirmed that four of the deceased man’s sons, excluding the eldest who was given away at birth, were biologically related to him.
Intriguingly, investigators were able to locate the real Mr. Abdul Rahman, a long-term resident of a home since 1994 due to his chronic schizophrenia. However, when shown a photo of the deceased man, he indicated that he did not know him.
Efforts to obtain the deceased man’s medical history from major hospitals and clinics yielded limited results, with only the Institute of Mental Health and Tan Tock Seng Hospital providing information. The real Mr. Abdul Rahman’s sister confirmed that he had received treatment at these institutions, but no concrete medical reports were linked to the deceased.
The sons of the deceased, who were shocked to learn about the discrepancies, had always known their father as Abdul Rahman Majid based on his identity card number in the birth certificate.
Investigations also uncovered additional clues. A cleaner who had worked in the block where the deceased had lived for over 20 years recalled a conversation with him in which he referred to himself as “Kassim.” Furthermore, during their previous residence in Hougang, the family had encountered a man who claimed to be from Malaysia and addressed their father as “Kassim.”
An inquiry was launched by State Coroner Adam Nakhoda due to the unidentified status of the deceased. The investigating officer was directed to conduct further investigations, including contacting the relatives of the deceased’s wife, checking rental flat records, and reaching out to the Registry of Muslim Marriages or the Registry of Marriages. Coffee shop canvassing and showing the photo of the real Mr. Abdul Rahman to the remaining son were also requested.
