June 29, 2021, 12:39 AM
A bizarre staring incident at Bedok 85 hawker centre that became an unfair two-on-one fisticuffs, only to see both aggressors getting assaulted, has resulted in one instigator getting jailed and his friend getting fined.
Roger Lian Yong Hong, 40, was on June 28 sentenced to two weeks and five days' jail.
Peh Kok Yong, 44, who joined Lian in the altercation, was fined S$1,500.
The prosecutor laid the blame on Lian for instigating the melee outside the 85 Fengshan Centre in Bedok North that night on Aug. 28, 2020, at about 10pm.
Lian pleaded guilty to a charge each of affray and voluntarily causing hurt.
Peh, for his role, admitted to one charge of affray.
The case against the third man, Jovi Neo Kok Sian, 29, who both aggressors teamed up against, is pending.
What happened that night
Neo was at the hawker centre that night with his wife.
They were looking for seats.
Lian saw the couple and got annoyed as he had been drinking while having dinner with colleagues.
Lian thought Neo was staring at him and went over.
Lian purposely coughed and asked, "Kua simi?", which is Hokkien for, "What are you looking at?"
The couple left for the car park to go elsewhere to eat, but Lian accosted them and an argument broke out.
Lian and Neo asked each other in Hokkien, "What do you want?", which was the scene caught on video.
After Lian's phone rang and he picked up to reply, "At the back", Peh arrived and charged at Neo.Lian grabbed Neo's shirt and Neo punched Peh in the face.
Peh fell to the ground.
Neo managed to run off, but Lian and Peh gave chase.
Lian then punched Neo's wife near her right temple, and kicked her leg after she fell.
He had noticed that Neo's wife had been recording the incident.
That was when the recording as seen online was cut off.
Injuries sustained
Neo broke his finger.
Lian suffered swelling and abrasions.
Peh scraped his knees and elbows, and suffered a black eye.
Neo's wife had abrasions on her elbow and knee.
The police were alerted about the fight at the market by a few members of the public.
What happened in court
The Deputy Public Prosecutor called Lian the instigator and asked for a jail term of a few weeks, CNA reported.
Lian was previously convicted of voluntarily causing hurt and riotous, disorderly or indecent behaviour in 2017.
The DPP said Peh should be fined only as his culpability was lower than Lian's because he did not contribute much to the fight as he kept falling over.
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