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SINGAPORE: Two youths who went on a rampage armed with knives on Thursday (Dec 17) pleaded guilty to causing hurt to at least two victims in September this year.
Sivaraj Manickam, 19, and Muhammad Taufiq Mohamad Raffi, 18, were at a McDonald’s fast food outlet along Hougang Avenue 8 past midnight on Sep 14 when they spotted a group of youths sitting nearby. Sivaraj and Taufiq thought the group was staring at them and wanted to attack them.
The boys took a taxi to Sivaraj’s house, where they hid knives in their pants before heading back to McDonald’s. By this time, it was about 2.30am and the group had left, but the duo spotted their victim, 21-year-old Malaysian Chen Cheng Jun and two of Chen’s friends.
Under the assumption that the three were part of the original group they wanted to attack, Sivaraj and Taufiq hit and slashed Chen and his friends. The trio managed to flee, but Chen sustained multiple lacerations and an arm fracture, and subsequently had to undergo an operation for his injuries.
Later that day, Sivaraj and Taufiq met up for lunch and decided to commit robbery. After purchasing two watermelon knives from a hardware store at Serangoon Avenue 3, the duo went on the prowl for a suitable victim.
They came across a 16-year-old boy, who happened to smile at the pair as he walked past them along Yio Chu Kang Road. But Sivaraj and Taufiq were “unhappy with the victim’s expression and manner of walking”, Deputy Public Prosecutor Krystle Chiang said, and decided to attack him.
Each armed with a watermelon knife, the pair kicked their victim on the back and slashed him on the head and body. The attackers fled when a passing bus honked at them, afraid that they would be identified.
The injured victim flagged down a passing taxi, and the driver called for an ambulance. The 16-year-old suffered from several slash wounds and lacerations, which would result in “permanent scarring”, according to a medical report.
In court on Thursday, District Judge Mathew Joseph noted that there “seems to be an upsurge of youthful violence” and said that the “courts need to take a serious view of this”.
Sivaraj, who is unemployed, and Taufiq, a car washer, are due to be sentenced on Jan 7, 2016.
- CNA/vc
Sivaraj Manickam, 19, and Muhammad Taufiq Mohamad Raffi, 18, were at a McDonald’s fast food outlet along Hougang Avenue 8 past midnight on Sep 14 when they spotted a group of youths sitting nearby. Sivaraj and Taufiq thought the group was staring at them and wanted to attack them.
The boys took a taxi to Sivaraj’s house, where they hid knives in their pants before heading back to McDonald’s. By this time, it was about 2.30am and the group had left, but the duo spotted their victim, 21-year-old Malaysian Chen Cheng Jun and two of Chen’s friends.
Under the assumption that the three were part of the original group they wanted to attack, Sivaraj and Taufiq hit and slashed Chen and his friends. The trio managed to flee, but Chen sustained multiple lacerations and an arm fracture, and subsequently had to undergo an operation for his injuries.
Later that day, Sivaraj and Taufiq met up for lunch and decided to commit robbery. After purchasing two watermelon knives from a hardware store at Serangoon Avenue 3, the duo went on the prowl for a suitable victim.
They came across a 16-year-old boy, who happened to smile at the pair as he walked past them along Yio Chu Kang Road. But Sivaraj and Taufiq were “unhappy with the victim’s expression and manner of walking”, Deputy Public Prosecutor Krystle Chiang said, and decided to attack him.
Each armed with a watermelon knife, the pair kicked their victim on the back and slashed him on the head and body. The attackers fled when a passing bus honked at them, afraid that they would be identified.
The injured victim flagged down a passing taxi, and the driver called for an ambulance. The 16-year-old suffered from several slash wounds and lacerations, which would result in “permanent scarring”, according to a medical report.
In court on Thursday, District Judge Mathew Joseph noted that there “seems to be an upsurge of youthful violence” and said that the “courts need to take a serious view of this”.
Sivaraj, who is unemployed, and Taufiq, a car washer, are due to be sentenced on Jan 7, 2016.
- CNA/vc
