A 35-year-old Chinese national, Chen Lei, was sentenced to 22 weeks imprisonment on Thursday (13 July) for punching an elderly taxi driver for no reason while inside his taxi, before attacking a police officer while being driven to the Bedok Police Division Headquarters, according to The Straits Times.
What happened?
In the late hours of February 4, 2022, an intoxicated man boarded a taxi after a drinking session.
The unsuspecting elderly cabby, 73-year-old Chor Kin Yong, encountered a barrage of punches from the intoxicated passenger without any provocation.
As Chor Kin Yong was driving Chen Lei through the Kallang-Paya Lebar Expressway (KPE) tunnel, the situation suddenly turned violent. Without warning, Chen began punching the cabby’s head and neck.
Acting swiftly, Chor defended himself by blocking the blows with his right hand while maintaining control of the steering wheel with his left hand. Sensing the urgency of the situation, Chor used his mobile phone to call the police for help.
Passer-by intervenes and fends off attacker
Chor brought the vehicle to an emergency stop at a safe spot and quickly exited the taxi. Meanwhile, an eyewitness named Mr. Mohamed Faizal Mohamed Latif observed Chen advancing aggressively towards Chor, who informed him of the assault he had endured.
Stepping in to intervene, Mr. Faizal used his arm to fend off the attacker until the arrival of the police, who responded promptly to the distress call.
The police later arrived at the scene and arrested Chen Lei. One of the officers at the scene, Senior Staff Sergeant Wong Chuen Kit, took charge of escorting the assailant to the Bedok Police Division Headquarters in a police car.
However, en route to the station, Chen demonstrated further acts of violence by kicking Senior Staff Sergeant Wong twice. These unprovoked attacks left the police officer with injuries to his left forearm and back, necessitating medical attention at Changi General Hospital.
Man claimed taxi driver hit him
During court proceedings, Chen Lei claimed that he had been struck by Mr. Chor, the taxi driver. However, the Deputy Public Prosecutors, Regina Lim and Maximilian Chew said that Mr. Chor had been securely strapped to his seat while driving through the KPE tunnel, making it highly implausible for him to have assaulted Chen, who was sitting at the back without putting on his seatbelt.
Additionally, video footage was also produced, showing Chen kicking Senior Staff Sergeant Wong twice in the police car, further validating the charges against him.
District Judge Ronald Gwee presided over the trial and ultimately convicted Chen Lei on one count of assault and two counts of voluntarily causing hurt to a public servant, sentencing Chen to 22 weeks’ imprisonment.