Khor Kok Soon (许国顺 Xŭ Guóshùn; 23 February 1953 – ) was a Singaporean gunman who was notorious for his high-profile shoot-out with the police at Shenton Way on 30 July 1984, and was also the prime suspect behind the murder of a 26-year-old lorry driver, whom he held as a hostage to help him drive away from the police before he allegedly killed him. Khor, who was involved in previous armed robbery offences prior to the 1984 shooting incident, fled Singapore after shoot-out and went on the run for the next 19 years, therefore becoming one of Singapore's ten most wanted criminals.
Khor was arrested at Malaysia's Johor Bahru in December 2003, and he was extradited back to Singapore to be charged with murder under the Penal Code, and also faced another three charges of illegally discharging a firearm under the Arms Offences Act. Subsequently, Khor was given a discharge not amounting to an acquittal for the lorry driver's murder, but he was convicted of firing his gun with intent to cause hurt, and sentenced to death on 25 February 2005. After losing his appeal in September 2005, Khor was eventually hanged at Changi Prison.
Biography
Khor Kok Soon was born in Singapore on 23 February 1953. He only studied up to Primary Six in elementary school, and he left school to become independent. It was at this point where he gradually gone astray, and he was first caught committing theft at age 13. He also became addicted to gambling, and often suffered great losses.
In 1979, Khor formed a gang with three other people, in which all four of them would commit armed robbery, and they were involved in near to 15 cases. Out of these robberies, Khor was involved in the October 1983 robbery of a lead factory owner in which he fired three shots at the victim, who survived the injuries. Another case took place in March 1984, where Khor robbed a pregnant woman and got off with S$9,000, and a third in May 1984, where Khor robbed a pair of sisters on gunpoint and got off with a S$36,000 loot.
In his personal life, Khor was married with two daughters, who were born in 1974 and 1978 respectively. He also worked odd-jobs and even sold ang ku kueh to make a living aside from his criminal career.
Shenton Way shooting incident
Shoot-out with police
On the afternoon of 30 July 1984, 31-year-old Khor Kok Soon and his 43-year-old accomplice, reportedly named Toh Huay Seow, planned to commit armed robbery at Shenton Way. Riding a stolen motorcycle, both Khor and Toh headed to Shenton Way, and upon reaching the place, they roamed the area and monitored at least six banks, looking for a target to rob. The pair's intention was not to rob a bank, but to rob any people who carried huge amounts of cash to the bank.
By the time the pair went to the sixth bank, a team of police officers were already arriving at that area due to a tip-off about the presence of armed robbers at Shenton Way. When Khor went inside the bank to search for targets to rob, Toh was approached by police and he was arrested. As for Khor, he was followed by two police detectives, Corporal Quek Chek Kwang (郭志光 Guō Zhìguāng) and Sergeant Lim Kiah Chin (林家振 Lín Jiāzhèn). After stalking Khor for some distance on the streets, both Sergeant Lim and Corporal Quek proceeded to restrain Khor, who brandished his gun, a .22 Browning Hi-Power, and pointed it at the two officers after breaking free of their grip. Afterwards, Khor made his escape.
While the two policemen gave chase after Khor, Khor ran onto the road and he attempted to climb onto a passing lorry, and he threatened the driver on gunpoint to drive him to safety. While Khor tried to enter the lorry, he first discharged his gun at one of the two officers, Sergeant Lim, who was the nearest behind him. The shot missed Sergeant Lim, and several shots were exchanged between Khor and the two officers, who were joined by a third policeman, Senior Inspector (SI) Cyril Sta Maria, who was not involved in the operation to capture Khor and Toh but happened to be driving by while off-duty. After the shoot-out, Khor managed to get into the lorry, and it drove off despite the police giving chase behind it.