Every country has one: that spot where weird things keep happening, and every day feels like an episode of The Twilight Zone. In the United States, it’s Florida. In Australia, it’s everywhere outside a city. In Singapore, it’s Yishun.
Here’s why Yishun is so exciting and terrifying (along with some rationalisations).
What strange things have happened in Yishun?
Some of the things that you find in Yishun are:
- Cat killings
- Cat killing (singular)
- People with stun guns
- Rat problems
- Drug syndicates
- Someone who wants your children
- Numerous murders and suicides
And many, many more. But in case you’ve forgotten, here’s a rundown of those main ones.
1. Cat killings
There has been a spate of cat killings in Yishun, most notably from September to December 2015. Within those four months, there were 17 reported cases of cat abuse. Two suspects were later arrested, with one of them eventually charged (more on this later).
More recently, within four days in April 2021, three kittens were found dead at the same block in Yishun. What’s more chilling is that dead cats have previously been found at the same block in January and October 2020.
Cats have been slit open, bludgeoned, thrown off high places, and so forth. And whatever your feelings about cats, here’s why it’s serious: many serial killers start by abusing defenceless animals, eventually working their way up to…well, people.
2. Cat killing (singular)
What do you do when a cat meows a lot? Feed it? Pet it? How about pick it up, and throw it off the 13th storey? In October 2015, that’s exactly what someone did. He chucked a male cat off the ledge because he felt it was being noisy.
Now in his defence, the courts found him to have moderate intellectual disability, so he may not have understood what he was doing. But it didn’t help that this occurred in a neighbourhood where people were already looking for a cat killer (and no, it’s not him).
3. Police getting attacked with a stun gun
In January 2017, two people were spotted by the police, in their attempt to steal something from a car. Now, here’s a pop quiz:
When someone who possess a loaded gun, and is trained to use it, approaches you, you should:
(a) Stop and do what he says
(b) Attack the person with a real gun, using a stun gun
The two people in question chose option B, which promptly led to their arrest. But that’s not the big issue. The big issue is how they managed to get their hands on a stun gun, when most of us can’t get a bigger laser pointer past customs.
Oh wait, there were another two guys playing with a stun gun at Northpoint in August 2016. Maybe they sell a much more exotic range of goods at Yishun pasar malams or something.
4. Rat problems
Yishun has on and off rat issues. Nothing out of control, but enough to be an annoyance at times.
Maybe the cat killings explain this one.
5. Drug syndicates
111 drug traffickers were nabbed in an operation in 2016. Guess where their leader was.
That’s right, he was caught with over S$62,000 worth of drugs at a suspected drug store in Yishun.
And more recently, in April 2020 (yes, you read that right, it’s during the Circuit Breaker), five people were arrested in Yishun. Drugs worth at least S$360,000 were seized as well.
But these were comparatively small. The biggest drug dealer from Yishun may be Barry Zheng Chongde, who was involved in a S$64.6 million cocaine syndicate in Australia. He was later charged in the Australian court in December 2016.
Drugs may also have been involved in an accident near Yishun MRT station. Three people were injured when someone tried to drive through a police roadblock (the police were searching the car before it happened).
It’s amazing no one is writing the script for CSI: Yishun (or even a Channel 5 or Channel 8 drama called Yishun) at this point.
6. Someone who wants your children
Let’s not forget that in November 2016, we had reports of a mysterious man asking for any children, via door-to-door knocking. Kind of like the most terrifying karang-guni man you’ve ever heard of.
This is really unfair, as any Yishun residents with pets or children now need to barricade their house. Maybe this is why so many of them have stun guns, is all we’re saying.
7. Numerous murders and suicides
Enter Yishun murders in Google, and you’ll receive a whole slew of search results dedicated to the subject. Some examples are this case, this other case and the most notable is the triple murder case in 2008 committed at Blk 349 Yishun Street 11.
Here’s a Crimewatch episode on the brutal murder.
Aside from murders, suicides are depressingly also a common occurrence in Yishun.
Why do these things happen in Yishun?
Our guess is population density. Yishun is around 21 square kilometres, with a population of 221,610 as of 2020. This translates to an estimated population density of 10,639 per square kilometre. Compare it to Bedok (12,777 per square kilometre), or Sengkang (23,519 per square kilometre), and you can see it’s not too packed.
Now if you want to do something covert — whether it’s being a cat serial killer or smuggle drugs, it’s the quieter neighbourhoods that you will move to. Yishun was emblematic of the sleepy residential enclave (until the weirdness), so you can see why a drug syndicate leader would pick the place. There were just fewer eyes to observe you.
Of course, that has since changed as Yishun’s bizarre events take the spotlight. Now, the town has a reputation for all the wrong reasons.
On the bright side, not all is bad
Sure, Yishun may have its quirks, but don’t let the horror stories scare you. If you take into account the relatively affordable housing and the number of amenities available at your doorstep, Yishun is a pretty great place to live.
(If you’re interested in finding a property in Yishun, browse the latest properties for sale in Yishun on 99.co today!)
Average resale prices here are one of the most attractive for home buyers, with plenty of other residential developments in recent times such as The Wisteria (with an average price psf of S$1,209.41) and North Park Residences (with an average price psf of S$1,573.01). Both of these projects have attracted a great deal of attention from property observers.
HDB resale flats in Yishun are also generally more affordable, with 4-room flats averaging S$450,000 in January 2022 — below the overall median price of S$450,000 for this flat type.
| Median resale price of flats in January 2022 | 3-room | 4-room | 5-room | Executive | Overall |
| Yishun | S$368,000 | S$450,000 | S$570,000 | S$800,000 | S$458,000 |
| Overall | S$359,444 | S$490,000 | S$588,444 | S$720,000 | S$500,000 |
Source: SRX
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If you’re looking for a new launch condo in Yishun, keep an eye on North Gaia EC – it launched in the first half of 2022.
The other new development was the Feb 2022 Yishun BTO, which was one of the more exciting sites in the launch.
You can also check out the Aug 2022 HDB BTO overview.
But that’s not all Yishun has to offer, here’s a little overview of what you can expect in the neighbourhood:
| Amenities | Yishun is well connected via Central Expressway, Seletar Expressway, and MRT. It is close to amenities such as Sun Plaza, Northpoint Shopping Centre, Yishun Country Club, schools, and community centres. |
| Healthcare facilities | Yishun is home to Yishun Community Hospital, one of Singapore’s largest community hospitals that provide intermediate care for recuperating patients. Situated beside Khoo Teck Puat Hospital, the two hospitals bring about an integrated care experience for patients, through a network of healthcare teams, information flow, and treatment plans. |
| Recreational facilities | Yishun offers a range of recreational facilities, including Yishun Park, Yishun Pond Park, and Lower Seletar Reservoir Park. These parks offer a range of activities, including jogging, cycling, and fishing. |
| Education | Yishun is home to several schools, including Yishun Primary School, Ahmad Ibrahim Primary School, and North View Primary School. There are also several tertiary institutions in the area, including GEMS World Academy and Northland Secondary School. |
| Transportation | Yishun is well connected to other parts of Singapore via the Central Expressway, Seletar Expressway, and MRT. The Yishun MRT station is located on the North-South Line and provides easy access to other parts of Singapore. |
Do you know of any other weird happenings in Yishun? Let us know in the comments section below.
If you found this article helpful, 99.co recommends Is Yew Tee the new Yishun? and Should you buy property in Singapore’s cursed town?
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Yes. the neighbourhood is so full bad news even JI planned to bomb the mrt station pre 9/11. lol
How bad is the crime rate compared to other areas? Did you do any more research to sustaintiate your claims? Are you just capitalizing on popular topics to get attention? Do you dare to tell your friends in Yishun this is what you think of the them.
Ryan, as a Singaporean you should be ashamed of yourself.
Are you even a local ? It is widely known among the heart-landers that Yishun is where all the weird stuff is happening. And indeed, alot of weird man-made incidents happen there. Can you argue that Yishun is as peaceful as say, Ang Mo Kio ? Get your salty ass off the internet if you’re gona get so upset and up tight over a light-hearted post. People like you are why people think Singaporeans are narrow-minded people who don’t know how to have fun. And you should be ashamed of yourself if you are a Singaporean, cos you’re not acting like one.
I used to live in Yishun in 2000 and it was very quiet and peaceful. All of these weird/violent stories are more recent so I don’t know what happened.
Yishun is a nice place to live in. Especially for young parents.
Plenty of preschools around the neighbourhood.
PSA: Our First Steps Preschool is offering S$400 discount off childcare for Yishun residents now. Google them and check it out yourself.
Am leaving in yishun since 35 years, i have not experience any thing like that as such, its a beautiful place to leave,
It’s all depends on the person to person whom u would like to mix with. If you are decent person u will prefer decent type of people. Good& bad are everywhere u can’t point out one area yishun only that ridiculous,
Look at NEA’s website on dengue cluster. Yishun has very few compared to other towns.
Either it is very well kept….or even the mosquitoes don’t want to be there. Could be interpreted in both ways.
Serangoon Gardens is a dengue cluster cuz of all the gardens in the landed homes there. But I would definitely choose Serangoon Gardens over Yishun as my choice place to stay any day!
Slay