EUNOS FLAT TRAGEDY......

From http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,163729,00.html

HIRE MEN TO KILL THEM

EUNOS FLAT TRAGEDY HUSBAND SHOUTED: 'I'M GOING TO KILL YOU ALL'
By Celine Lim
May 03, 2008

HE would get drunk and abuse his wife whenever he lost money gambling.
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Chen Xiang Li even embezzled more than $20,000 from his company to pay off his gambling debt last year, said a church pastor who tried to help him.

His wife had taken the gas cylinder deliveryman, 41, to the One Hope Centre in Joo Chiat to seek help last November.

However, it was not enough to keep Chen from going off the deep end.

He tried to kill his family at 5am on Tuesday before leaping to his death from their 17th-storey Eunos Crescent flat.

A more accurate account of what took place that morning has emerged after The New Paper spoke to his wife's pastor.

Mrs Chen, a hairdresser in her 30s, had told him what happened.

Details of the China-born Chen and his problematic life have also emerged.

Reverend Louis Chai, 47, Mrs Chen's pastor and a counsellor with One Hope Centre, said Chen had not been serious about dealing with his gambling problems.
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'He was not very forthcoming with us. We don't know if he had any other debts,' he said.

'He went for counselling as he wanted his wife to return to him.'

Mrs Chen had taken out a Personal Protection Order (PPO) against her husband three years ago.

She had also previously left home with their daughter, 7, to 'avoid danger' from his abuse.

Rev Chai said: 'Chen showed up for counselling with One Hope less than five times. He stopped coming after he realised he couldn't win his wife back.

'Previously, he had gone for family counselling, but he didn't always show up for sessions. I don't know if he had sought any psychiatric help before.

'Mrs Chen said her husband continued to be unpredictable and violent even after we helped him deal with his debt (to the company).'

The company was unaware of his latest embezzlement until Rev Chai and another counsellor had gone with Chen to see his boss.
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They worked out a repayment plan together, where about $1,000 would be deducted from his salary each month until the debt was paid off.

Chen had confessed to keeping the money he collected from his deliveries, said Rev Chai.

'He told us he issued false receipts for payments, using old receipt books he had kept.

'We later found out that he had prior embezzlement problems, but since he had cleared his previous debts, the company kept him on.'

Rev Chai said Chen had indulged in 'various kinds of gambling'.

Early this year, Mrs Chen was granted a domestic exclusion order by the Family Court, which took effect a month ago.

Rev Chai explained: 'The order meant that Chen had to vacate the family home to avoid causing physical danger to his wife and daughter.

'But even after he left, he kept calling the home. He threatened to kill them, threatened suicide and even said he would hire assassins to kill them.'
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TNP Illustration: CEL, CHNG

Even after Chen's death, his wife is afraid to return to their flat because of the last threat, said Rev Chai.

He said they were concerned that an assassination attempt might be in the offing.

'We can't be sure that Chen was making an empty threat. His wife and daughter are in hiding now.'

He said the daughter is 'very traumatised and angry' at what her father did. News of his death has been kept from her.

After persuasion by the counsellors, Mrs Chen agreed to reveal what she had been through as her husband's family did not know about his history of violence.

Rev Chai said: 'Chen has been making himself look like the victim. He told his family in China that his wife has been trying to dump him.

'Mrs Chen thought of filing for divorce before, but held back because their daughter is still young and because of the pressure from his family.

'But she had recently sought legal advice for a divorce as she was worried for her daughter's safety.'

The couple had met in Chen's hometown in Fujian province, China, in 2000.

Mrs Chen moved to Singapore soon after they got married. She became a Singapore citizen a year ago.

Rev Chai said: 'The domestic violence started soon after they were married. Chen had slapped, shoved, and pulled his wife's hair in the past.

'She confided in church members and there were many attempts to get him to change. In 2005, he even took out an advertisement in the Chinese newspapers to apologise to his wife.

'This is Chen's second marriage. His first wife had also been a victim of domestic violence.'

It is not clear at present if a wake will be held for Chen. Mrs Chen wants to keep his funeral low-profile, but Chen's first wife wants a more elaborate arrangement.

Rev Chai said Chen's family would arrive here in a few days, and the decision would be made then.

He said: 'Mrs Chen is traumatised, but trying to control her emotions. She has broken down many times in private since the incident.

'Her story is to warn people that gambling can destroy families,' he added.

Helpline: 65471011 (9am to 6pm)

E-mail: help@onehopecentre.org

Could the pastor at the counselling centre done more abt the matter? A man's life has been lost and the family is now at loggerheads whether they should cremate the husband's body immediately or have a wake for him.

It is interesting to note that the man won $350,000 at the lottery after his divorce to his first wife. Think he squandered everything away through gambling. He was not reported to the police by his employers when he embezzled 20,000 from his company.