Finding seats in a crowded hawker centre can be challenging, especially when it’s peak hour and everyone’s eager to get some food.
Unfortunately, a couple looking for a table at Bedok 85 Market ended up getting mistaken for staring at a man, spurring him into aggressive behaviour.
A violent brawl ensued, involving 3 men. On Monday (28 Jun), 2 of them were charged in court.
The instigator of the incident was eventually sentenced to 19 days’ jail.
On 28 Aug 2020, 29-year-old Jovi Neo was looking for seats at the market with his wife when they caught a diner’s attention there.
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40-year-old Roger Lian, who was having dinner and drinking with his colleagues, apparently spotted Neo staring and got annoyed.
Intoxicated, Lian confronts Neo and asks what he was looking at in Hokkien, reports Channel NewsAsia (CNA).
Neo and his wife then walked away to eat elsewhere but was approached by Lian again.
If you’ve seen the viral clip of the fight, here’s probably when the camera started rolling.
The pair soon got into an altercation, each asking the other “what do you want” in Hokkien.
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Halfway through the argument, Lian answered his ringing phone and told the caller “at the back”.
His friend, 44-year-old Peh Kok Yong, soon arrived at the scene and attempted to strike Neo on the head.
Neo appears to have blocked the shots but returned the favour with a crisp right hook, causing Peh to fall.
A short skirmish then broke out, with Lian and Peh exchanging blows with the younger Neo.
When Neo attempted to run, the pair gave chase. The entire fight only ended after Lian noticed Neo’s wife was filming.
However, Lian reportedly redirected his aggression and punched Neo’s wife on the head, causing her to fall before kicking her legs.
All parties suffered injuries due to the fight:
On Monday (28 Jun), CNA reports that Lian and his friend, Peh, admitted to their charges:
The prosecution reportedly called for a stiffer sentence for Lian, citing previous offences he had committed in 2017.
These involve him voluntarily causing hurt and participating in riotous, disorderly, or indecent behaviour.
However, Lian’s lawyer pointed out that his client is remorseful and aware that he should have controlled his emotions.
Lian, who was identified as the instigator, was sentenced to 19 days’ jail.
His friend, Peh, was given a lighter sentence of $1,500 fine since he did not participate in the fight much due to him being drunk.
Neo’s case is pending.
No matter the circumstances, resorting to violence is never the right thing to do.
We hope all parties would learn their lesson and would refrain from such violent behaviour moving forward.
At the same time, we hope they’ve since recovered from their injuries sustained during the brawl.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from District Singapore on Facebook.
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