In a show of kampong spirit, an off-duty police officer stepped in to help his neighbor catch a snake that had slithered into her HDB flat. Yvonne Wong, who spotted the harmless tree snake in her Bukit Batok unit last Monday around 12:15pm, had initially contacted the police and was later referred to the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) and wildlife group Acres.
But by the time help arrived at 2:40pm, the snake had gone missing, and Wong was advised to get in touch again if the snake reappeared. After her neighbor, 39-year-old inspector Fariz Mohd Noor, heard about the incident, he assured her family that they could contact him anytime for help.
The next day, when the creature made another appearance, Wong contacted the AVA and was told she would have to wait half an hour for the team to arrive. So she told Insp Fariz about it and he came by to render assistance.
“As I was unsure of the species of the snake, I put on a pair of gloves and tried to pull the snake out of the hole,” he informed The Straits Times. “But the snake went deeper in, so we had to dismantle part of the study table.”
After successfully nabbing the snake, he released it into a nearby forested area. Wong then put up a Facebook post on the Singapore Police Force’s page, praising her neighbor for going beyond his duty to help those around him.
As for Insp Fariz, he admitted that even though he had undergone training on handling snakes, that was over 10 years ago, and this was his first time catching one while he was off-duty. But he considered helping his neighbor as part of his duty to keep everyone safe, he added.
