A man suspected of being involved in a theft case wielded a knife and disrupted a group of kindergarten children's rehearsal for a performance for their pre-school's National Day celebrations.

He was arrested after being confronted by eight police officers.

The incident took place at about 11am on Monday at Block 785E Woodlands Rise.

About 30 kindergarten children were in a sheltered area rehearsing their performance when the man with the knife appeared, reported Chinese-language newspaper Shin Min Daily News yesterday.

The knife was about 20cm long and the atmosphere was tense, an eyewitness told the newspaper.

Another said six teachers were with the children, some of whom suffered bruises in trying to flee. The eyewitness added that the man did not harm the children.

A 21/2-minute video posted on Facebook by user Muhammad Raihan on Monday showed a man being confronted by eight officers holding batons in a sheltered area.

He wrote in his post that a white screen, speaker and two microphones were in the sheltered area, and that the children were rehearsing for a National Day performance when the incident took place.

The man initially did not obey when officers told him to put down the knife. But he eventually did so, lay on the ground and was arrested.

The police confirmed yesterday that a 55-year-old man, suspected of being involved in a theft case, was arrested during a police operation on Monday.