Man allegedly bites off part of elderly man's palm 'like a zombie' in Pandan Reservoir altercation

While walking his dog at Pandan Reservoir, a 75-year-old man heard a woman shouting: "Help my child!"

He saw a man in a truck holding a crying little girl, and believed she was a victim of kidnapping.

The elderly man, Lin Yachun (transliteration from Mandarin), apparently tried to intervene and tell the man to calm down.

He said he stretched out his right hand while calling out to him.

But the man pulled his arm to his mouth and bit his palm "like a zombie".

He allegedly used so much force that he bit off a chunk of the elderly man's palm.

A piece of flesh, apparently dislodged from his palm, was later found in the truck.

The case was heard in court on May 27.

The alleged aggressor pleaded not guilty.

Like a zombie

The incident took place on Apr. 18, 2023, according to Shin Min Daily News.

The defendant, 51-year-old permanent resident Yatham Naga Venkata Sateesh, said he had parked his truck in the parking lot.

His daughter had been sitting in the passenger seat.

Yatham's lawyer said that Lin had approached him and hit him on the neck.

He denied that Lin had told him to calm down.

Instead, he alleged that Lin covered Yatham's face with his hand, causing him to struggle for breath.

Yatham then allegedly bit down in self-defence.

Lin argued that he did ask Yatham to calm down.

He claimed that because Yatham pulled his hand towards him, his palm might have ended up over the other man's mouth.

When Yatham bit down, Lin said he was in so much pain that he could not describe it in words.

He asked a member of the public to call the police.

The passer-by who helped him do so also helped him to stop the bleeding with tissues, he said.

Needed a skin graft

Because of his injuries, Lin underwent two surgeries, including a skin graft.

However, the palm of his hand no longer feels or looks as "natural" as before.

He told the court that he can no longer open his palm naturally, hold things, or grasp them tightly.

A medical report from the National University Hospital confirmed that he had sustained a 5.5cm by 4cm wound on the part of his hand beneath his right little finger.

He also suffered from skin and subcutaneous tissue loss, damage to an artery, and exposure of his flexor tendor.

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