Five men received jail terms of two to three years plus caning for their roles in a deadly gang fight outside Concorde Hotel on Orchard Road. The defendants—Puthenvilla Keith Peter (26), Sashikumar Pakirsamy (34), Raja Rishi (28), Sridharan Elangovan (30), and Manojkumar Velayanatham (32)—all pleaded guilty to rioting. The State Courts convicted them on Tuesday (25 Feb 2025).
The fight occurred around 6:00 AM on 20 August 2023, resulting in the death of 29-year-old Mohammad Isrrat Bin Mohd Ismail, who belonged to a secret society. At least 15 people faced charges related to the incident. Court documents showed Manojkumar, Sridharan, and Sashikumar were members of a different gang than the victim.
The night before, these three men and Raja met friends at a Serangoon Road nightclub for a birthday celebration. The group visited several nightclubs and consumed multiple bottles of hard liquor.
Around 4:00 AM, they moved to Club Rumours at Concorde Hotel and Shopping Mall, where Puthenvilla joined them. Isrrat, a former bouncer at the club, was there with his friend Muhammad Shahrulnizam Osman (30) distributing wedding invitation cards to staff.
After learning rival gang members were present, Isrrat and Shahrulnizam armed themselves with knives for self-defense.
At about 6:00 AM as the club closed, Isrrat and Shahrulnizam shouted vulgarities at the defendants’ group, who responded by yelling their gang name. The groups began pushing each other. After Isrrat punched one of the defendants’ friends, Asvain Pachan Pillai Sukumaran (30), he and Shahrulnizam left the nightclub.
The defendants’ group chased them through Kramat Lane. During the pursuit, Shahrulnizam drew a bread knife and injured three people. Isrrat and Shahrulnizam then fled back to Concorde Hotel, injuring another person.
Upon learning people had been slashed, the defendants’ group sought revenge. They surrounded and beat Isrrat in the corridor outside the nightclub, at the hotel exit, and on the escalator outside the hotel. Asvain picked up Isrrat’s dropped knife and stabbed him multiple times.
All five defendants joined in the chase and assault, punching and kicking the victim. Isrrat was taken to the hospital but died. The autopsy found 32 injuries across his body, including eight stab wounds to his back and abdomen.
After the stabbing, Asvain suggested that four people, including Sridharan and Manojkumar, take their passports and flee to Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Authorities later arrested them at Woodlands Checkpoint.
The prosecution noted that 11 people beat the victim for six minutes. Whenever he tried to escape, the beatings continued until he was stabbed and fell into a pool of blood.
District Judge Eddy Tham pointed out that the victim and his friend started the brawl by bringing knives. The defendants had gone to the nightclub for a birthday celebration, not as an organized gang gathering. This meant the gang membership of three defendants wasn’t an aggravating factor.
The judge based sentences on each defendant’s involvement, criminal history, and whether they tried to flee afterward.
Sridharan received three years in prison and six strokes of the cane. Manojkumar and Raja got two and a half years in prison and four strokes of the cane. Puthenvilla was sentenced to two years and two months in prison and three strokes of the cane. Sashikumar received two years in prison and two strokes of the cane.
Asvain faces a murder charge, with his case still pending.
