A 14-year-old boy attached a knife to a bamboo pole before setting an image of it as his profile picture on WhatsApp. The teen had also threatened to go on a “school rampage”.
His mother eventually called the police on him, leading to his arrest.
Pleading guilty to one charge under the Protection from Harassment Act (POHA), the boy, now 15, was sentenced to six months in a juvenile rehabilitation centre.
According to Shin Min Daily News, the boy had asked his mother for a knife.
Source: BBC
After receiving it, he taped the knife to a bamboo pole and took a picture before setting it as his profile picture on WhatsApp.
The boy’s classmates and form teacher were able to see the profile picture sometime in 2022, The Straits Times (ST) reports.
The teacher then took a screenshot and sent it to his mother.
As he would often “go berserk”, his mother was worried for her own safety and that of her bedridden husband.
He had also threatened to go on a “school rampage” like a similar case at a local secondary school, Shin Min Daily News reports.
The day after, she reported the incident to the police. When they arrived, the boy refused to open the door to his room, locking himself within.
They unlocked the door using a key and found him holding the weapon up.
He did not put up a struggle, and police managed to arrest him.
Now 15 years old, the boy was diagnosed with social communication disorder and adjustment disorder, and would require supervision and counselling.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
However, court documents noted that he was of sound mind, ST reports.
The boy also had extreme views on terrorism and radicalisation. Previously, he had taken sharp objects like a knife and sewing kit to school, and expressed thoughts of harming himself and his schoolmates.
During one such incident, he threw his phone out of his classroom window after being reminded to submit his homework.
He’d also thrown a canned drink and swung a metal flask at his mother.
With his father bedridden from paralysis after an accident and his mother too terrified to control him, the judge said he did not have sufficient family support and supervision.
This was further proven by the fact that his mother provided him with the knife and did not report the matter immediately to the police.
As such, probation would be unsuitable for him.
The prosecution argued for a sentence of 24 months in a juvenile rehabilitation centre, which the judge said was disproportionate to the severity of the offence.
In response, the boy has appealed against the sentence. He has also refused to attend therapy, labelling the requirement to attend counselling or therapy as unreasonable.
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