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32YO Man Fined $5K for Assaulting Female Friend While Drinking in Clarke Quay

Zhi Hao

2021-09-14 , 1:59 pm

More often than not, alcohol ends up bringing out the worst in us.

But to what extent? Well, let’s just say that if you’re not careful…

It could even land you in serious trouble with the law.

32YO Man Assaults Female Friend While Drinking in Clarke Quay

The evening of 24 August 2019 was supposed to be a chill one.

32-year-old Gel See Toh Jia Yao had met up with friends for a night of drinks, somewhere along Eu Tong Sen Street.

After consuming two pints of beer at a bar, they headed off to another nearby bar where they convened with two of See Toh’s friends.

They then indulged in a bottle of whiskey before heading to a third bar.

At around 2 am, they had supper at an eatery. After that, they trekked to The Central’s taxi stand for what was supposed to be their swansong for the night.

Was.

A female friend left first, leaving See Toh alone with the other 27-year-old female friend.

It was then that things escalated.

See Toh reportedly asked the 27-year-old to accompany him home, and started to hug and grope her.

When she declined his invitation, however, he grew incensed.

See Toh proceeded to hit her, and even dragged her across the walkway.

At one point, he even subjected her to a “neck lock” technique.

She was eventually rescued by bystanders, who intervened to separate the pair.

The entire incident was captured by an in-car camera of a nearby vehicle.

Injuries

The 27-year-old subsequently visited Sengkang General Hospital, where she was examined to have suffered bruises on her hand, wrist, elbow and head.

She ended up incurring six days of outpatient hospitalisation leave.

Meanwhile, See Toh was found to have sustained a blood alcohol level of 51 milligrams per 100ml. The blood sample was taken at around 11:30am.

Sentencing

In court, the prosecution sought a S$5,000 fine, stating that the attack had been one-sided and unprovoked, and that serious harm could have been caused had the public not intervened.

As the victim suffered relatively small injuries, however, no jail time was sought.

Meanwhile, See Toh’s lawyer Kalidass Murugaiyan had asked for a fine as well, stating in mitigation that See Toh had not planned the attack beforehand, and had not been vicious.

“Gel continues to regret his actions and is willing to take responsibility for them,” the defence lawyer said.

For the assault, See Toh was fined a maximum sum of S$5,000.

In addition, he’s required to pay the victim S$500 as compensation.

For the offence, he could’ve faced a jail term of up to two years, a fine of up to S$5,000, or both.

Drunken Antics

Unfortunately, such acts are far from being uncommon here.

Back in October 2020, a 69-year-old Singaporean was sentenced to six weeks’ jail for assaulting a bus driver while drunk back in 2019.

And earlier in June 2020, a woman had fallen into the Singapore River while drunk.