Private-hire drivers often face unique and unexpected challenges while providing transportation services to passengers. One Grab driver in Singapore faced a passenger who had things to get off her chest.

The Unusual Ride Request

It all began with a simple ride request. The driver received a booking from a passenger who needed transportation from Geylang to Orchard. However, what followed was anything but ordinary.

The Grab driver received a request to pick up the passenger at Pavillion Square, located at 345 Geylang Road. As the driver reached the designated spot, the passenger was nowhere to be found.

In his quest to locate the passenger, the driver messaged her, asking for her exact location. The passenger replied that she was at “325 gaylang (SIC)” instead of 345 Geylang, which she had booked on the Grab app.

Perplexed by this mix-up, the driver then asked the woman if she was at 325 Geylang, why would she indicate 345 Geylang instead?

The woman then replied with a photo of her chest.

Perplexed, the driver then replied that her sending a photo of her chest to him doesn’t help matters, and he would rather have her exact pickup location instead.

Eventually, the Grab ride was cancelled and the driver received a $4 compensation fee in the end.

Taking to Facebook to share the head-scratching incident, the driver captioned screenshots of the conversations, saying: “See la see la.. what we drivers have to go through everyday? You tell me dulan or not.. wait until cancel me. Lucky got $4 compensation.”

Netizens’ comments

1. Uncle is a man of integrity, willpower & sheer strength
2. Driver isn’t a simp today
3. She showed them so you can just grab.
4. Is ok bro, end of day u still got $4 doing nothing, what a good deal ..Ha
5. Wah people now days ah…. How to sign up for grab?
6. Not only he get 4 dollar compensation, he got that close up pic

Viral Reaction

Love can be a turbulent journey, and for one 25-year-old man, it took a dark and unsettling turn. Fueled by anger and frustration, he resorted to threats and harassment against his on-and-off girlfriend, ultimately leading to his incarceration and a hefty fine.

The man cannot be named because of a court order protecting the identity of the victim.

He was sentenced on Tuesday (31 October) to 5 months imprisonment and fined $2,000 after pleading guilty to two counts of threatening to distribute intimate images and one count of harassment, with another 6 more charges being considered during his sentencing.

Background of the Case

According to The Straits Times, the 25-year-old man had been in a tumultuous romantic relationship with a 35-year-old woman since 2018.

Over the years, they shared intimate photos and videos of each other with each other, making their connection even more complex.

The Threats and Harassment

On February 27, 2022, their relationship took a sinister twist. During a conversation on WhatsApp, the man, who was already upset, believed that she intended to bring other men into her life.

He then reacted by threatening to use black magic on her as well as insulting her. The victim then lodged a police report against the man, citing his harassment over WhatsApp.

2 months later, on 30 April, with the couple having already broken up, the man then sent her an intimate photo of herself without any clothes on and threatened to upload the photo onto Facebook, blaming her for finding a new man and moving on.

The woman then lodged another police report against him.

Then on 19 July, about 3 months later, the man once again sent the victim some more intimate photos of herself, with two of them wearing nothing and another two of her in her underwear.

This time, he threatened to set those photos as his WhatsApp profile photo if she continued to ignore him; the victim then lodged yet another police report against him once again.

Mitigation

During the court proceedings, the defendant, who was not represented by legal counsel, offered an explanation for his behavior.

He attributed his threats and harassment to his anger and extreme stress, citing the recent loss of his mother who had just died at the time.

He also showed up late for his court hearing on Tuesday and told District Judge Ow Yong Tuck Leong that he was late because his pregnant wife had morning sickness and he had to care for her.

His wife was present at his hearing in court, and reportedly cried during the hearing.

This disturbing case reveals a troubling pattern of behavior. The man had faced similar charges related to the same woman in 2021, resulting in a 10-month jail sentence.

A heartwarming story unfolded as a group of Temasek Polytechnic students displayed exceptional bravery and compassion in the face of an unexpected crisis.

On a regular evening when they were simply heading out for dinner, destiny had a different plan for them. They witnessed a 4-car collision and got out of their bus to rescue a woman from one of the cars that was leaking fuel, and the woman later turned out to be a senior staff member from their school.

The Evening That Changed Lives

Adli Yazlani Bin Zainal, Marco Sim, Norvin Tan, and Lycia Goh, all 18-year-old students at the School of Informatics and IT in Temasek Polytechnic, were not anticipating that their evening would take such a dramatic turn.

On the evening of October 23, they had gathered to study and revise together after school. Once their study session concluded, they decided to hop on a bus and head out for dinner as a group.

However, as the clock ticked past 7:10 pm, their ordinary evening took a sudden and unexpected twist.

A loud crash near the polytechnic’s main gate grabbed their attention. It was an accident, a chain collision involving four cars, and it had just occurred right beside their bus.

From Shock to Action

The initial shock was palpable, as none of the students had ever witnessed a traffic accident in person before. However, their desire to help kicked in almost immediately.

Adli, Sim, Tan, and Goh made a unanimous decision to take action. At the next bus stop, the east gate of Temasek Polytechnic, they alighted and hurried over to the accident site to offer assistance.

A Heroic Effort Unfolds

Adli’s quick thinking played a crucial role in this situation. He noticed that one of the affected cars had fuel leaking out, creating a potentially hazardous situation.

Without hesitation, he rushed to the vehicle and knocked on the window, trying to communicate with the woman inside. She was conscious but appeared to be in a state of shock from the crash.

Adli tried to communicate the urgency of the situation and urged her to get out of the car immediately. He not only helped her out of the car but also retrieved her shoes, which had been thrown to the front of the car from the collision.

Sim, Tan, and Goh joined the effort, assisting in carrying the woman to a nearby grass patch while Adli took on the role of signaling passing vehicles to maintain a safe distance and prevent any further accidents, as they called for an ambulance as well.

The quartet spoke to the woman and tried to calm her down, while also checking on her condition. there were also 4 other drivers and 2 passengers involved in the crash, with the last car suffering the most serious damage from the crash, although the driver of that vehicle was uninjured.

The Unforeseen Connection

As events unfolded, the students were unaware that the woman they had rescued was none other than Assistant Director for Academic & Student Development at their school, Ms Gail Goodenough.

She had been involved in the accident while in a Grab ride, which had come to a stop at a traffic light when a speeding car had hit her car from behind, triggering a chain reaction involving four cars.

Goodenough revealed that she suffered minor injuries to her tailbone and right lung, as well as some scars and bruises from the accident.

She was treated at the hospital before being discharged and was present during an awards ceremony for the four students, who received Certificates of Commendation by the school for their heroic rescue, and she expressed her gratitude to the group of teenagers.

32-year-old Imran Zulkhifi, was sentenced on 30 October to 3 years and 6 months imprisonment, as well as 12 strokes of the cane after pleading guilty to one charge of robbery.

The unemployed man got into an argument with his parents over his joblessness, and robbed a minimart along Pasir Ris Street 11 with a knife, placing the weapon on the neck of the employee and demanding all the money he had, according to Shin Min Daily News.

What happened?

Imran, who had been unemployed for a long period, got into an argument with his parents, who were upset that their jobless son always stayed at home instead of looking for a job.

He grabbed $150 in cash before storming out of the house after the fight, using the money to buy some cigarettes and going to an internet cafe overnight.

The following afternoon, he was left with just $10.

A Desperate Robbery Plan

Imran then contemplated robbing a minimart for money and set his plans in motion, choosing that particular outlet because he knew the area, and that the minimart would only have a single worker on duty at night, planning to kill the worker with a knife that he had with him inside his sling bag, if he refused to cooperate.

He then scouted the vicinity and the reaction time of the police, so that he could plan his escape from the scene he did so by calling the police about a “suspicious man” near the minimart.

He timed the police and estimated that he had about 30 minutes to flee from the scene.

The Heist

In the early hours of February 1, 2023, around 1:46 a.m., Imran put his plan into action. He stealthily entered the minimart, approached the employee from behind, and brandished the knife.

The employee, taken by surprise, was threatened with the knife, leading to a terrifying ordeal. Fearful for his life, the employee complied and handed over all the money from the cash register.

After successfully escaping with S$580 in hand, Imran discarded the black jacket he had worn as a disguise. Despite his attempts to cover his tracks, the police managed to track him down and apprehend him the following evening, with only S$276 of the stolen money remaining.

The Traumatized Employee

The victim impact statement presented in court shed light on the emotional aftermath of the incident.

The minimart employee was deeply traumatized by the robbery, to the point where he became paranoid in everyday situations.

He even hid under the counter at one point, mistaking a customer’s hand gesture for a potential threat.