Flasher on board? Get him off the bus, I'm late
Ugly, uncaring S'porean irks victim's dad
By Benson Ang
October 25, 2008 Print Ready Email Article
A FATHER tried to catch a man who exposed himself to his teenage daughter on a public bus - and discovered the best and worst in Singaporeans.
Click to see larger image
GOOD SAMARITAN: First Sergeant Terence Yu shows how he restrained the flasher until police arrived. TNP PICTURE: CHOO CHWEE HUA
The good: Two fellow passengers who stepped forward to restrain the flasher, and two others who offered help.
The bad: A passenger who became impatient while they were waiting for the police to arrive, and wanted them to take the suspect and leave the bus so that the bus could continue on its journey.
Mr Tan, 52, a technical support officer, said the passenger, who appeared to be in his 60s, was sleeping but woke up when the bus stopped and shouted in Hokkien: 'Why is the bus not moving?'
He then shouted for the suspect to be taken off the bus so that the driver could move on.
Said Mr Tan: 'I just ignored him. The suspect could've escaped if we had alighted. It's just disappointing that there are people like him.'
Despite the man's calls, two women on the bus told the driver to stay put. One offered to call the police.
But while they were waiting for the police, six passengers alighted, probably because they did not want to be delayed.
The incident happened around 11am on 7 Sep. The Tan family - father, mother, daughter, 15, and two sons aged 10 and 12 - had boarded SBS Bus Number 88 to Tan Tock Seng Hospital to visit a relative.
(We are not using their real names as the girl cannot be identified under the law.)
Mr Tan and his family were sitting on the top deck of the double-decker bus when Muhamad Yuzaimi Salleh, 22, exposed himself.
The family weren't seated together because the available seats were scattered. Mr Tan was sitting at the centre of the bus while his daughter was sitting near the rear.
Muhamad Yuzaimi was initially seated at the front but he later moved to the rear and sat next to Mr Tan's daughter.
When they were travelling along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, the girl went up to her father and told him that Muhamad Yuzaimi had exposed his private parts to her.
Ran down stairs
Mr Tan then confronted Muhamad Yuzaimi, who apologised repeatedly. When Mr Tan said he was going to call the police, Muhamad Yuzaimi bolted out of his seat and ran down the stairs.
By then, the bus was at a stop opposite the Ang Mo Kio South Neighbourhood Police Centre.
Said Mr Tan: 'The door was open but I jumped down the stairs after him. I managed to grab him by his slingbag and dragged him back into the bus.'
An army regular, First Sergeant Terence Yu, 25, and another man helped Mr Tan to detain the suspect.
First Sergeant Yu held onto Muhamad Yuzaimi and pinned him against the side of the bus, just behind the stairs.
Mr Tan then called the police.
Said First Sergeant Yu: 'I saw the young girl's scared face and I knew something was amiss. I held the man from the back with an armlock which I had learnt from my army training.
'The man resisted at first, but after a while, he gave up. So I unlocked him and let him sit down.'
The bus driver informed his company and shut all the doors.
Mr Tan said his daughter was so scared she 'was actually trembling'.
His wife then got off the bus with her to wait at the bus stop.
Six police officers arrived within 10 minutes and handcuffed Muhamad Yuzaimi.
Mr Tan, his daughter and Mr Yu followed the police to give their statement.
Mr Tan said his daughter was in shock. 'She's okay now but she doesn't want to talk about what happened,' he said.
Last Friday, Yuzaimi pleaded guilty to doing an obscene act in a public place and was jailed two months. Back to News
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Ugly, uncaring S'porean irks victim's dad
By Benson Ang
October 25, 2008 Print Ready Email Article
A FATHER tried to catch a man who exposed himself to his teenage daughter on a public bus - and discovered the best and worst in Singaporeans.
Click to see larger image
GOOD SAMARITAN: First Sergeant Terence Yu shows how he restrained the flasher until police arrived. TNP PICTURE: CHOO CHWEE HUA
The good: Two fellow passengers who stepped forward to restrain the flasher, and two others who offered help.
The bad: A passenger who became impatient while they were waiting for the police to arrive, and wanted them to take the suspect and leave the bus so that the bus could continue on its journey.
Mr Tan, 52, a technical support officer, said the passenger, who appeared to be in his 60s, was sleeping but woke up when the bus stopped and shouted in Hokkien: 'Why is the bus not moving?'
He then shouted for the suspect to be taken off the bus so that the driver could move on.
Said Mr Tan: 'I just ignored him. The suspect could've escaped if we had alighted. It's just disappointing that there are people like him.'
Despite the man's calls, two women on the bus told the driver to stay put. One offered to call the police.
But while they were waiting for the police, six passengers alighted, probably because they did not want to be delayed.
The incident happened around 11am on 7 Sep. The Tan family - father, mother, daughter, 15, and two sons aged 10 and 12 - had boarded SBS Bus Number 88 to Tan Tock Seng Hospital to visit a relative.
(We are not using their real names as the girl cannot be identified under the law.)
Mr Tan and his family were sitting on the top deck of the double-decker bus when Muhamad Yuzaimi Salleh, 22, exposed himself.
The family weren't seated together because the available seats were scattered. Mr Tan was sitting at the centre of the bus while his daughter was sitting near the rear.
Muhamad Yuzaimi was initially seated at the front but he later moved to the rear and sat next to Mr Tan's daughter.
When they were travelling along Ang Mo Kio Avenue 3, the girl went up to her father and told him that Muhamad Yuzaimi had exposed his private parts to her.
Ran down stairs
Mr Tan then confronted Muhamad Yuzaimi, who apologised repeatedly. When Mr Tan said he was going to call the police, Muhamad Yuzaimi bolted out of his seat and ran down the stairs.
By then, the bus was at a stop opposite the Ang Mo Kio South Neighbourhood Police Centre.
Said Mr Tan: 'The door was open but I jumped down the stairs after him. I managed to grab him by his slingbag and dragged him back into the bus.'
An army regular, First Sergeant Terence Yu, 25, and another man helped Mr Tan to detain the suspect.
First Sergeant Yu held onto Muhamad Yuzaimi and pinned him against the side of the bus, just behind the stairs.
Mr Tan then called the police.
Said First Sergeant Yu: 'I saw the young girl's scared face and I knew something was amiss. I held the man from the back with an armlock which I had learnt from my army training.
'The man resisted at first, but after a while, he gave up. So I unlocked him and let him sit down.'
The bus driver informed his company and shut all the doors.
Mr Tan said his daughter was so scared she 'was actually trembling'.
His wife then got off the bus with her to wait at the bus stop.
Six police officers arrived within 10 minutes and handcuffed Muhamad Yuzaimi.
Mr Tan, his daughter and Mr Yu followed the police to give their statement.
Mr Tan said his daughter was in shock. 'She's okay now but she doesn't want to talk about what happened,' he said.
Last Friday, Yuzaimi pleaded guilty to doing an obscene act in a public place and was jailed two months. Back to News
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