52-year-old William Aw Chin Chai was sentenced on 15 September to 4 weeks imprisonment after pleading guilty to 4 charges, which included the use of criminal force and an offence under the Protection from Harassment Act.
He had assaulted a 13-year-old girl at Ion Orchard, before attacking former radio host Cheryl Miles by punching her. A month before that, he had attacked a 37-year-old man, who was with his two children at the time, aged 7 and 8; after pushing the younger boy, according to The Straits Times.
The victims cannot be named because they are protected under the Children and Young Persons Act.
The Incidents
VivoCity Altercation
On June 29, at approximately 5.45pm, at VivoCity. Aw encountered a 37-year-old man with his two young sons. In an inexplicable act, Aw pushed the younger boy, fortunately not causing any injuries.
When the boy’s father confronted Aw, the situation escalated into a heated exchange of vulgarities and physical confrontation.
The man then left with his children and Aw continued to follow them into the carpark at Basement 1 of the mall, hurling vulgarities at the man, who then pushed Aw and kicked him.
A police officer nearby, who was doing his patrols at the time, then proceeded to the scene with another officer after being alerted to the incident by a member of the public and spoke to the two men.
However, Aw continued to insult the man and poked his face, resulting in the man punching him in the neck.
Ion Orchard Incident
On July 26, at around 4.20pm, within the premises of Ion Orchard. Aw, without any provocation, tapped a 13-year-old girl on the back of her head.
Alarmed by this act, the girl and her friend then followed Aw as he made his way to Orchard MRT station. There, he encountered former radio DJ Cheryl Miles and punched her on her right upper arm, before Miles then confronted him and took a video.
The police were then alerted by the MRT station master.
Legal Consequences
Warning and Evaluation
Following the incidents, the father involved in the VivoCity altercation received a stern warning for his behavior. Meanwhile, Aw was arrested on August 1 and subjected to a forensic psychiatric evaluation at the Institute of Mental Health from August 3 to 17. The evaluation concluded that Aw was not of unsound mind during the commission of the offenses.
William Aw Chin Chai had a troubling history marked by violence. Just a year before this incident, he had been sentenced to two weeks and ten days in jail for spitting at a bus driver and a passenger. His record also included other offenses involving causing harm and using criminal force.