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Singapore

High Court dismisses appeal against sentence by brothers who assaulted mother's ex-boyfriend

High Court dismisses appeal against sentence by brothers who assaulted mother's ex-boyfriend

The entrance of the Supreme Court in Singapore.

SINGAPORE: The High Court on Friday (Aug 24) dismissed an appeal by a pair of brothers who assaulted their mother's ex-boyfriend in 2016.

In March this year, Ng Shiuh Shao, 24, was sentenced to two years' jail while his younger brother Ng Shiuh Leong, 23, received nine months for attacking Mr Tey Meng Seng, their mother's 42-year-old Malaysian ex-boyfriend.

Their mother, Ms Cindy Lim Wan Chan, 45, got to know Mr Tey on Facebook and the couple dated, before breaking up sometime in December 2015. About a month after this, Mr Tey started dating another woman, Ms Leong Choi Kuen, whom he also got to know on Facebook.

On March 28, 2016, the older Ng received a call from his mother, saying that she was going to meet Mr Tey. His mother, along with Ms Leong, wanted to check Mr Tey's phones as they suspected him of contacting other women.

The two brothers, along with one of their friends known as Ashrin, took a taxi to meet their mother.

That night, all four of them arrived at Mr Tey's rental unit. Ms Leong was also there, as she and Ms Lim intended to confront Mr Tey about his relationships with them, and also about financial issues.

Meanwhile, the two brothers and Ashrin planned to attack Mr Tey when he returned home.

As he entered the compound, the three men rushed towards him, hitting him with their fists while scolding Hokkien vulgarities. The older Ng and Ashrin took turns to hit him with a stool.

The older brother also pointed a knife at the victim, asking him to hand over his two mobile phones.

The three men and the two women left the scene after returning him his phones and personal documents. Mr Tey filed a police report the next day.

He sustained multiple injuries, including bruises on his face and head, as well as a wrist fracture. He was warded in hospital, incurring more than S$1,400 in medical fees.

Ashrin remains at large.

TWO BROTHERS CALLED THEIR SENTENCES 'MANIFESTLY EXCESSIVE'

The two brothers were unrepresented in court. They had discharged their defence lawyers in April this year and engaged new ones, who later discharged themselves.

The older Ng contended that the sentence was "manifestly excessive", and said the District Judge "erred by failing to consider or sufficiently appreciate that there was an element of provocation by the victim".

He also claimed that the judge had erred in placing "insufficient mitigating weight" on his age, plea of guilt and compensation, and in finding that he was not truly remorseful for his actions.

The younger Ng appealed on similar grounds.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Yang Ziliang disagreed that the sentences imposed were manifestly excessive.

He said the older Ng's claim that he "just wanted to stand up for their mother's honour" was essentially vigilante justice, "which has clearly no place in our society and must be discouraged".

Justice Aedit Abdullah dismissed the appeal, finding that the sentence meted out by the District Court was correct. 

However, he allowed the older Ng to defer his sentence for eight weeks to spend time with his child, and gave his younger brother a deferment as well.

Source: CNA/ll(ra)

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