‘Pay me S$10K’ — Man threatens to burn house after parents use his car without his permission

SINGAPORE: A man got angry that his parents used his car without his permission and demanded compensation from his mother. The mother refused to pay his son, who then threatened to burn down their house and even burn his mother’s clothes on the stove. 

The 35-year-old man pleaded guilty to one charge of mischief and was sentenced to five days’ imprisonment. 

Case details

According to investigations shared by Zaobao, the suspect called his mother, who was on a business trip back then, on August 23, 2025, and claimed that she and his father used his car without his permission. Because of this, he demanded a total of S$3,000 compensation for their alleged action. 

When the mother refused to pay, the suspect increased the amount to S$10,000. Still, the mother did not want to pay. With this, the suspect decided to threaten his mother, stating that he would burn their house down. Furthermore, the suspect also went into his mother’s bedroom, took some of her clothes from the closet, put them on the stove, and started to burn them. 

Worried about the behaviour of his son, the mother called the suspect’s twin brother and asked him to call the police for help. Upon the arrival of the authorities, the Singapore Civil Defence Force admitted that both of the brothers were unharmed and that no flames or embers were visible aside from the burned clothes on the stove. 

The suspect was arrested and charged two days later. He remained in custody at the Institute of Mental Health for a psychiatric evaluation and was not released on bail until Sep 8 last year.

Furthermore, the suspect admitted his mistake and would take full responsibility for his actions. Moreover, his lawyer also pointed out that the suspect’s mental health assessment report showed his mental illness was not the cause of his crime, but hoped the judge would still consider his case and grant him leniency. Following this, the judge ultimately sentenced him to five days’ imprisonment. 

Other related news

In similar news relating to fire incidents, a man set fire to the garbage chute in his HDB flat as a joke, claiming that he was being chased by creditors and wanted to frame them.

The 29-year-old suspect now faces four charges of mischievous arson and one count of intentional assault. He pleaded guilty to two of the charges, and the remaining to be considered by the judge during sentencing. 

Read more about the news article here.