SINGAPORE, Aug 27 — Upset that a TODAY photojournalist was taking photos of his girlfriend’s mother who was accused of abusing her domestic helper, a 22-year-old man wrapped his arms around the photographer outside the State Courts last year.
Today, the State Courts sentenced Matthew Loh Jun Kai to nine months of supervised probation after he was found to have used criminal force on the photographer.
Loh will be required to remain indoors from 11pm to 6am and perform 60 hours of community service.
His mother will also have to pay a bond of S$5,000 (RM15,269) to ensure his good behaviour during the period of probation.
The case
The incident happened on the afternoon of September3 last year, when the 27-year-old photojournalist — who has since left TODAY — was waiting at the entrance of the State Courts to take photos of the mother of Loh’s girlfriend.
Loh accompanied his girlfriend to the courtroom that day.
His girlfriend's mother, 53, is contesting 12 charges of causing hurt to the maid.
These include pushing the helper’s head, slapping her, hitting her chest, and striking her head with a ladle, a mobile phone, the heel of a high-heeled shoe and other items. The woman is scheduled to return to court early next month.
Loh, the first among the trio to exit the State Courts, noticed the photojournalist.
He approached him and attempted to distract him by asking for a lighter, but was ignored.
When his girlfriend’s mother left the building later, the photojournalist approached her to take a photo, but was held back by Loh who wrapped his arms around him.
A scuffle ensued between the two men. An officer from the State Courts Police Unit witnessed the incident.
Poor impulse control
Referring to a report from Loh’s probation officer who highlighted several risk factors, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Jason Chua said that Loh has poor impulse control and is unable to regulate his emotions.
His misjudgment in wanting to help his girlfriend’s mother also arose from a lack of knowledge about the laws on the use of criminal force, said DPP Chua.
Speaking to Loh directly, District Judge Jasvender Kaur first told him to button his shirt, which was untucked, before moving to an issue that gave her “a bit of concern”.
During the course of investigations, Loh said that he was interested in psychology and wanted to specialise in it.
But the judge noted, from feedback she received from the private educational institution where Loh studied, that he had a poor attendance rate.
In response, Loh said he has trouble sleeping at night and often finds himself unable to wake up in time for his lessons.
District Judge Kaur said that he could try to use an alarm clock.
She also learnt that he was either distracted or disrupting lessons, sometimes with vulgar language.
“There is no place for such behaviour,” she said. “Make sure this is not repeated.”
Nevertheless, the judge said she was heartened to learn that Loh’s relationship with his parents has improved, particularly his aggression towards his mother.
For using criminal force, Loh could have been punished with a jail term of up to three months or fined up to S$1,500, or both. ― TODAY
