Youth Who Punched Helper Over Aircon Issue Sentenced To Reformative Training

The brain of a teenager is a curious thing.

Having been a teenager myself, I can attest to the fact that rationality and composure are two traits that hardly make an appearance in the minds of youths.

This is why teenage PMD riders continue to grace our streets and roads with their devices even after the ban, and why they met their friends during the circuit breaker.

News about a teenager doing something stupid shouldn’t surprise you anymore, but it’s still infuriating at times.

Youth Who Punched Helper Over Aircon Issue Sentenced To Reformative Training

A youth who punched his helper following a dispute over an air-conditioner issue was sentenced to at least six months of reformative training (RT) on Tuesday (1 Sept).

According to TODAY, RT is a regimented rehabilitation programme for offenders under 21 who commit relatively serious crimes.

Two years ago, on 7 June, the youth, Ng Jia Sheng, asked his helper, Estabillo Soledad Agustin, to switch on the air-conditioner.

Agustin replied that it was already switched on, but Ng disagreed.

This isn’t exactly a subjective matter, is it?

So he repeated his request and asked her to adjust it to a “very cold” setting. The 41-year-old Filipina agreed to do so, but replied in an irritated manner, the court heard.

Angry with how she responded, the youth followed her to the living room, where Agustin threw the air-conditioner remote control onto the table after using it.

This did not please Ng.

An argument ensured and they both started shouting at each other. The 20-year-old spat on the helper’s face and she did the same thing.

According to the prosecutor, Ng then told the victim that she was “only a maid, was poor and had no right to be in Singapore”.

So not only is this guy abusive, he’s a bigot as well.

Now, at this point when tensions are high, an adult would have had two choices:

1. Stop shouting and try to reason with each other
2. Leave the room and calm down before continuing the conversation

But for a teenage brain, only one option exists:

1. React irrationally, deal with the consequences later

And That’s Exactly What He Did

During their altercation, Ng punched Agustin on the forehead and even held a chair in a threatening manner as if he wanted to strike her with it.

Even after Ng’s father separated him from the helper, Ng followed Agustin to the kitchen where he grabbed a metal mug containing some water and threw it at her.

The mug struck Agustin under her left eye and she began to cry, saying Ng had no right to hit her and that not even her parents or husband did so.

She threw a few items such as plastic medicine bottles and a plastic jug at Ng in retaliation, but they all missed him.

After Ng’s brother calmed her down, Agustin told another maid in the household to call the police.

The helper sustained a broken nose as well as abrasions and swelling over her eye, and had to be taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

What Happens in Reformative Training?

According to TODAY, Ng pleaded guilty earlier this year to one charge each of using criminal force on his helper.

Two other charges of voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation were also taken into consideration for sentencing.

Unlike community-based sentencing which allows offenders to remain in society while serving their sentence, youth offenders undergo their RT in a Reformative Training Centre (RTC).

Their RT includes counselling, academic training, and vocational training. They will also be supervised heavily after leaving the centre.

If they fail to comply with the requirements in the supervision order, such as staying at home or wearing a tracking device, they may be recalled to their RTC for re-detention.

Just like imprisonment, RT results in a criminal record.