Man gets jail, fine for punching stranger outside KTV lounge, causing victim to suffer face fractures
Johnson Ang Wai Ping leaving the State Courts on March 7, 2024.
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- While drunk, Ang Wai Ping Johnson challenged a stranger to a fight and punched the person twice in the face
- Ang also pushed the person's friend when he tried to stop the assault
- When he was arrested, he verbally abused a police officer
- He was sentenced to nine months and four days' jail and a S$3,500 fine
BY
LORAINE LEE
Published March 7, 2024Updated March 7, 2024
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SINGAPORE — Having been jailed multiple times for causing hurt did not deter a 45-year-old man from punching a stranger outside a karaoke lounge while drunk.
On Thursday (March 7), Johnson Ang Wai Ping was sentenced to nine months and four days' jail and a fine of S$3,500 after he pleaded guilty to two counts of voluntarily causing grievous hurt and one count of harassing a police officer.
Another three similar charges were taken into consideration for sentencing.
Ang will begin his sentence on March 21 after the judge granted him a deferment to settle his work.
WHAT HAPPENED
On Jan 12, 2019 at around 12.55am, Mr Tan Seow Huat, then 44, and Mr Thng Khoon San, then 50, stepped out of a karaoke lounge at Broadway Plaza in Ang Mo Kio to smoke.Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Wong Shiau Yin told the court that as they were waiting at the lift lobby to return to the lounge, Ang approached Mr Tan and challenged him to a fight.
Mr Tan did not know Ang and could tell that the man was drunk, so he walked away.
DPP Wong said: "Other bystanders who witnessed the confrontation also tried to calm down the accused and attempted to diffuse the situation.
"However, the accused remained agitated and suddenly walked towards Tan and punched him twice on his face."
Ang also pushed away Mr Thng when he tried to separate the two men from each other.
While Mr Thng was not hurt, Mr Tan suffered several fractures on his face. He was hospitalised for three days and given 17 days of hospitalisation leave as a result.
At about 2.55am on Jan 12, police officers were deployed to the scene and they handcuffed Ang.
"The accused was uncooperative and aggressive and demanded to speak to his boss to say that he is not able to attend work," DPP Wong said.
When a police officer said that he would relay the message to lock-up officers, Ang uttered a Hokkien vulgarity.
PAST OFFENCES
DPP Wong sought a sentence of 10 to 12 months' jail and a fine of S$4,000, noting that Ang has been sentenced for similar offences between 2015 and 2017."The attack on the victim was unprovoked and both parties were unknown to each other prior to the incident," she added.
"Despite the intervention of bystanders to de-escalate the situation, the accused did not back down and proceeded to assault the victim."
When asked by the judge whether Ang's previous sentences are dated since he was last sentenced in 2017, DPP Wong said that the latest offence had happened in 2019 and that Ang is "heavily traced".
Ang's past sentences were:
- Five months' jail in 2015 for voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation
- Six months' and four weeks' jail in 2016 for voluntarily causing hurt and voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous means
- Six months' jail in 2017 for criminal intimidation
It was not stated in court why Ang was prosecuted more than five years after the 2019 offence.
His lawyer, Mr Chung Ting Fai of Chung Ting Fai and Co, asked for leniency and said that Ang is "deeply remorseful".
The defence asked for a sentence of not more than eight months' and three days' jail and a fine of not more than S$2,500.
"He is genuinely upset and regretful over his actions, as evidenced by his early indication to plead guilty to the charges brought against him," Mr Chung added.
"In acknowledging the consequences of his choices, the accused is committed to spending the remainder of his days dedicated to rebuilding his life and starting afresh."
For voluntarily causing grievous hurt, Ang could have been jailed up to 10 years and fined or caned.
For using abusive words against a public servant, he could have been jailed for up to 12 months or fined up to S$5,000, or both.