Boon Lay Assailant Was Not Of The Minimum Legal Age To Purchase Tobacco Products
Earlier this week, disturbing news of a man being attacked at a Boon Lay FairPrice store circulated widely on the internet.
Boon Lay Knife Assault Leaves Man Injured, FairPrice Shuts Store To Help Him
Though many people soon came to the victim’s aid, it wasn’t clear what the events are leading up to the incident.
On Friday (9 Oct), Lianhe Zaobao reported that the attack allegedly happened after the victim refused to buy cigarettes on behalf of the assailant.
The attacker was charged in court today and faces up to 15 years’ jail.
Boon Lay assailant and victim did not know each other before incident
According to Lianhe Zaobao, the 18-year-old attacker and 23-year-old victim were not acquainted prior to the incident.
On Wednesday (7 Oct) afternoon, the assailant apparently approached the victim, asking him to buy cigarettes on his behalf from the nearby FairPrice outlet. The minimum legal age to purchase tobacco products was raised to 20 years old earlier this year.
This reportedly happened outside the Boon Lay Shopping Centre supermarket.
As expected, the victim denied the request and proceeded to have his temperature taken outside the supermarket.
Without warning, the man slashed the 23-year-old from the back using a 15cm knife, reports Lianhe Zaobao.
SafeEntry officer tried to stop assailant from entering supermarket
The injured man rushed into the supermarket seeking help.
Seeing the events that had transpired, a SafeEntry officer courageously attempted to stop the knife-wielding from entering the supermarket premises, reported Lianhe Zaobao.
However, the 18-year-old reportedly ignored her and barged into the supermarket, further injuring the victim.
One witness who spoke to Lianhe Zaobao claimed the assailant only stopped attacking after the victim collapsed to the ground.
The victim was later brought to Ng Teng Fong General Hospital for treatment.
Faces life imprisonment
Officers from the Jurong Police Division managed to identify the assailant after looking at CCTV footage.
He was nabbed later that day.
The 18-year-old was charged in court today (9 Oct) for “causing grievous hurt by dangerous weapon”.
Anyone guilty of this section of the law can either be jailed for life or for up to 15 years’ and caned.
Hope the victim recovery soon
If the alleged events leading up to the attack are true, it only makes the attack even more troubling.
In any case, we should never resort to violence no matter how severe the conflict we are faced with.
We hope the victim’s injuries are only superficial and wish him a speedy and smooth recovery.
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Featured image adapted from Facebook and Google Maps.
