In a ceremony held at the Public Transport Security Command on 25 June 2018, Mr Keith Goldfinch was commended for his public-spiritedness. With his assistance, the Police have arrested a 53-year-old man in connection to a case of public nuisance and insulting the modesty of woman that occurred at Newton MRT Station.
On 19 June 2018 at about 5.35pm, Mr Keith Goldfinch, was on an escalator at Newton MRT Station when he heard a woman shouting for help to stop a man. Without hesitation, Mr Keith Goldfinch and another member of the public chased after the man and managed to detain him at the MRT station.
Officers from the Public Transport Security Command conducted checks on the 53-year-old man and found upskirt videos in his phone. The man was subsequently arrested for public nuisance and he will also be investigated for insulting modesty of a woman.
Assistant Commissioner (AC) of Police Koh Wei Keong, Commander of Public Transport Security Command commended Mr Goldfinch for his courage and civic minded actions which resulted in the arrest. AC Koh said: “In the crowded public transport system, every commuter can help to look out for one another and step in to help when a criminal act is spotted. Mr Keith Goldfinch played a critical role as he was vigilant to take notice of the victim’s needs and was willing to step forward to detain the suspect. His display of public-spiritedness is indeed commendable.”
Mr Goldfrinch who suffered a minor graze on his leg in his tussle with the suspect said, “I don’t feel like I’ve done anything particularly special… I’ve done what anyone else will do, it’s an instinctive, human thing to do. If I haven’t done anything, I would have felt awful.”
The Briton had just returned to Singapore from France on 19 June and decided to surprise his son by picking him up from nursery when the incident happened. The 42-year-old Briton who works as an engineer at Rolls-Royce decided to act after he heard shouts for help to stop someone from two girls on an adjacent escalator heading upwards.
Mr Goldfrinch’s brave act not only won him the police award, but also the adoration of his 4-year-old son William. William prepared for his dad a Father’s Day card with the message: “You are a hero, daddy.”