On Tuesday (27 Dec), 64-year-old Mr Zhang was on a bus in Tampines when he noticed a middle-aged passenger uttering vulgarities under his breath.
He didn’t think much of it, but when Mr Zhang stood up to alight, the man ran up to him and rained punches.
Other passengers rushed to stop the assailant. With blood still dripping from his head, Mr Zhang hurriedly got off the bus.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
The police and SBS Transit are investigating the incident, reported Shin Min Daily News.
After returning his taxi on Tuesday (27 Dec) at around 6pm, cabbie Mr Zhang took a bus from Block 101 Tampines Street 11 towards the spectacle shop his wife worked at.
As he sat down, he took notice of a middle-aged person seated on the third row behind him, continuously spewing vulgarities.
At first, Mr Zhang brushed it off and didn’t look at the man.
Shin Min Daily News reported that he stood up to alight when the bus arrived at his destination.
However, the bus passenger suddenly ran up to him and directed Hokkien vulgarities at him.
Mr Zhang asked him what was wrong, but this seemed to trigger him.
The man threw a punch at Mr Zhang, sending his glasses flying. It happened so suddenly that the 64-year-old did not have time to dodge and was struck on the forehead.
“He punched me a few times and even kicked me,” he said.
Thankfully, other passengers came to his aid and helped to hold the man back.
But by this time, Mr Zhang’s face was bleeding profusely. Without his glasses, he couldn’t see his surroundings clearly.
He then asked the bus driver to let him alight the vehicle before hurriedly leaving the scene.
After alighting, Mr Zhang tried to stem the blood flow by pressing one hand on the head wound. Even then, blood continued seeping.
He left a trail of blood in his wake as he walked about 200m to his wife’s workplace.
When he arrived at the spectacle shop, he tried to stop the bleeding.
Following that, he visited a nearby clinic for treatment and was given two days of medical leave.
As the wound on his forehead was rather deep, Mr Zhang believed the bus passenger was wearing a ring or some other accessory.
Besides his forehead, his cheek and lips were also wounded. For the rest of the day, he felt faint.
To date, Mr Zhang said he was still in pain from his injuries and would often feel giddy.
He shared with Shin Min Daily News that he might have to see a doctor again.
Mr Zhang said this was his first time experiencing such violence after taking public transport for years.
Being attacked by a stranger has left him fearful of taking the bus again.
A police report on the incident has been lodged.
Shin Min Daily News confirmed that the police had received the report, and investigations are ongoing.
SBS Transit, who was informed of the incident by Mr Zhang’s daughter, said they would conduct an internal investigation and keep them updated.
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Featured image adapted from Google Maps and Shin Min Daily News.
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