There has been a troubling rise in slashing incidents of late. Such unnecessarily violent acts tend to spark outrage amongst the general public due to the fallout suffered by the victims.
In yet another case of a knife attack, a Malaysian teen girl refused to pay a S$120 (RM400) taxi fare for the distance between Johor to Kuala Lumpur (KL).
In the altercation between her and her e-hailing driver, she slashed his throat and escaped.
Malaysian police have since arrested the teen. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years’ jail.
Free Malaysia Today reports that authorities arrested a 16-year-old Malaysian girl for attacking her driver on Saturday (16 Apr).
Investigations by the Setul police department reveal that the 63-year-old driver had picked his passenger up at Sagil in Tangkak, driving her to Jalan Ipoh in KL. The distance is 164km by road.
Upon arrival, the driver informed the girl that the fare amounted to S$120 (RM400). The girl refused to pay the fare as she did not have enough money.
As a result, the driver decided to take her to the police station.
Out of fear, the girl reacted by slashing the driver’s throat with a penknife, leaving it in the car before escaping.
The driver then managed to travel to Sentul police headquarters for assistance and was escorted to the hospital.
According to Free Malaysia Today, the driver lodged a report at 2.55am on Wednesday (13 Apr).
Investigations then led the authorities to the teenager’s location at the Maybank Jinjang branch, where she was arrested at 4.55pm on 16 Apr.
Source: Google Maps
The New Straits Times reports that the teenager had no prior criminal record before the incident. Authorities also seized her mobile phone.
Sentul police chief Assistant Commissioner Beh Eng Lai has further confirmed that the Malaysian police are investigating the teenager for one charge of voluntarily causing hurt with a weapon.
The maximum penalty for such an offence is 10 years of jail, fine or caning.
In that situation, the teenager’s fear is certainly understandable. After all, being unable to pay your taxi fare is a nerve-wracking experience.
Even so, it does not excuse the fact that she seriously wounded the elderly driver by her actions. It was fortunate that he managed to get help despite his injury.
Such incidents feel all the more alarming due to the violent nature of the assault. Singapore has witnessed its fair share of slashing attacks of late, such as the Beach Road attack the other day.
Hopefully, the frequency of such assaults will decrease in the future. We hope the driver recovers well.
Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.
Featured image adapted from Free Malaysia Today.
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