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Hedger David Gerard, 59, an SMRT station manager, heard a woman shout "Molest!" while chasing a man who tried to escape through the gantry. He reacted immediately.

He was among the five individuals presented with the Community Partnership Award at Clementi Police Division. The ceremony, held on Feb. 6, also recognised six organisations for their strong community partnership with the Singapore Police Force (SPF).

Additionally, five members of the public were presented with the Public Spiritedness Award for assisting the Police in three separate cases, which included theft, outrage of modesty and voyeurism.

These awards are presented to exemplary individuals and organisations, who through acts of kindness and valour, made a difference in the community.

Responding to a cry for help

In an interview with Mothership, Hedger shared that he had been stationed at the control room of Commonwealth MRT when he heard the cry for help at around 12pm.

He immediately looked out and saw a middle-aged man running through the gantry. About 15 feet behind was a frantic-looking lady chasing after him.

Hedger stepped out of the booth and yelled at the man to stop, as he was about to reach the escalator.

The man dutifully obeyed and Hedger asked him to sit down. Before asking the man what happened, he assigned a female colleague to take the woman aside.

Hedger said that the man immediately admitted he had offended. After ascertaining that it was a case of molest, Hedger asked the woman if she wanted to pursue the matter.

She was hesitant at first, but after some encouragement, decided to file a police report.

Hedger kept the two of them separated while waiting for the police to arrive.

While the man did not have to be restrained, he asked Hedger to let him go.

Hedger had to convince him to stay. "I put you at a place where the cameras can see you," he told the man, "I'm not going to restrain you, but if you leave, (the police) will be at your house by dinner time. I think it's best that you stay."

The man seemed remorseful and Hedger occupied him in conversation until the police arrived.

He said, "It was the longest 20 minutes of my life."

Doing the right thing

On reflection, Hedger shared that he had not done something exceptional to defuse the situation, and had only done his duty.

"It just happened so fast. My instincts automatically kicked in -- the bosses always tell us to respond quickly to such situations. I did not even know if it was a misunderstanding at that point," he said.

The woman told Hedger that the man had slapped her on the buttocks as they were passing one another near the entrance of the MRT station.

Hedger advised her not to stay silent, as she was clearly flustered and upset. He convinced her to do something about it, otherwise she would likely be affected for the "next day, maybe the next few months or even years".

As a faithful employee of SMRT for 14 years, Hedger always strives to do better. In this case, he was proud of himself for doing the right thing.

This is his first time receiving the Community Partnership Award.

Being aware and ready

Hedger recalls handling a similar case around five years ago. It involved a man taking upskirt videos of a woman. He says that such incidents are common for front-line staff.

After this particular molest case, he advised his staff to get ready to intervene as soon as possible, if a situation develops.

He also shared some advice for the public on how to deal with potential molest cases.

If such cases happen in the train, they should take note of the passenger compartment number, located on the inside of the train door.

After which, they should go to the passenger service centre and notify the station staff.

They will be asked to provide details about the time of the incident, compartment number and descriptions of the suspect, including their race, height, age, and what clothes they were wearing.

This way, the staff can check the CCTV footage inside the train compartments and work with the police to identify the suspect.

To Hedger, this would help the many "silent victims" who experience molest but may not dare to do anything about it.

Fighting crime is a community effort

Serene Chiu, an assistant commissioner of police and the Commander of Clementi Police Division, expressed her appreciation to the award recipients for their public-spiritedness.

She said, "Fighting crime is a community effort. The award recipients have demonstrated commitment and took action to prevent, deter and detect crime. We thank them for their community mindedness and vigilance in keeping Singapore safe and secure. We hope their stories will inspire others."

Top image via SPF.