Man punches wife in car on PIE after accusing her of having an affair

SINGAPORE — Upset because he believed that his wife was unfaithful to him, Mohamad Indera Mohamed ended up assaulting her so badly that she needed treatment at a hospital.

The 37-year-old pleaded guilty on Thursday (June 22) to causing hurt to his wife and is due to be sentenced next month.

This is pending the results of a court-directed pre-sentence protocol, which defers an offender's sentencing until he undergoes treatment to address underlying issues.

WHAT HAPPENED

Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Yeo Zhen Xiong told the court that on the evening of June 2 last year, Indera and his wife were travelling on the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) headed towards Tuas near the Steven's Road exit.

While they were in the car, the couple got into an argument because Indera suspected that his wife was having an affair with a male friend that she was trying to meet.

Despite his wife's denial, Indera refused to believe her.

Frustrated with her husband's distrust, she tried to open the door while the car was moving.

Indera pulled her back and when she tried once more, he angrily punched her two to three times in the face, DPP Yeo said.

The next day, he punched her on her head, kicked her on the left rib cage and punched and kicked her body several times. These injuries are part of another charge that would be taken into consideration for sentencing.

Indera's wife was referred to the emergency medicine department at the National University Hospital after the police received a call a few days later from a concerned social worker.

As a result of the assault over the two days, the wife suffered multiple injuries over her eye, forehead, lower chest and hip.

Speaking on his behalf, lawyer Ryan David Lim from the Public Defender's Office urged District Judge Carol Ling to consider calling for a probation report as well since his client has demonstrated a desire for reform and should have a community-based sentence.

Mr Lim added that Indera has also sought to go for counselling of his own accord for his anger management and jealousy issues, and wishes to change things for the better.

For causing hurt to his wife, Indera could be jailed up to three years or fined S$5,000, or both.