SINGAPORE: A 50-year-old woman was sentenced to four weeks’ jail, as well as a $4,600 fine, on Tuesday (Feb 11). Jessinta Tan Suat Lin had thrown eggs at her West Coast Road neighbour and beaten her on the head with a mop during an altercation in February last year. A few months later, she told her teenage son that she might kill her husband while he was sleeping. Both the neighbour and her husband filed police reports.
On Jan 2, Tan pleaded guilty to one charge each of committing a rash act, voluntarily causing hurt, and causing alarm with threatening words. Two additional charges were considered in her sentencing.
A confrontation between neighbours
The incident with the neighbour occurred on Feb 16, 2024, at Westmont, where Tan, her husband, and son live. At around 10:00 that night, the neighbour was using a jump rope to exercise in a common area near the development’s swimming pool.
Since Tan felt that her son wanted to rest, she asked her neighbour to stop. However, her neighbour refused.
Upset, Tan first threw eggs at her neighbour from the window of their flat. She then took a mop from their home and approached her neighbour to confront her again, and the two women got into a fight. When the other woman grabbed the mop from Tan, she bit her neighbour in the arm, causing her to drop the mop. Tan then proceeded to hit the woman on the head with the mop several times, causing her to bleed. When the neighbour called the police, Tan threw a trash bag and a metal incense container at her.
The neighbour was then taken to the hospital to be treated for bruises and the bite mark, needing stitches for her injuries. She later moved out of her unit due to the assault, CNA reported.
According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Zhou Yang, Tan wielded the mop with so much force that its aluminum pole broke into three pieces.
Tan was arrested and released on bail, with her husband as her bailor.
The incident with her husband
On Apr 28, 2024, Tan got into an argument with her husband. She later sent him a message threatening to jump bail, which would have resulted in his losing the $2000 he had put up for her bail.
Her husband also overheard her threatening to kill him.
She told their teenage son, “I will just kill him one day. He might just die one day in his sleep. One day, when I am really mad, he will die in his sleep. He better lock his door when he sleeps at night.”
According to Tan’s lawyers, she is suffering from depression and anxiety. However, she was not found suitable for a mandatory treatment order, which would have meant psychiatric treatment instead of jail time for her. District Judge Crystal Goh cited a psychiatrist’s findings, saying these conditions did not have a contributory link to her offences.
Tan could have been jailed for up to three years and fined $5,000 for voluntarily causing hurt, jailed for up to six months and fined up to $2,500 for committing a rash act, and fined up to $5,000 for causing harassment./ TISG
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