Man who assaulted pre-school boy gets 14 weeks’ jail; victim had shown him a lewd hand gesture

SINGAPORE - Unhappy with a four-year-old boy who had flashed a lewd hand gesture at him, a man assaulted the child and grabbed his right arm in March.

Muhammad Firdhaus Mokhtar, 37, then swung the boy backwards by his arm, causing the child, who was his son’s schoolmate, to fall.

Firdhaus also threatened to break the victim’s finger, and said he would return for him on Monday.

On Sept 30, Firdhaus was sentenced to 14 weeks’ jail after pleading guilty to one count each of assault and using criminal force on another person.

He was ordered to fork out $170 in compensation - the cost of the victim’s medical bills.

The child’s mother, who addressed the court on Sept 30, said she was very perturbed by the incident and her son still had nightmares.

She added he had been asking about Mondays following the incident, and his confidence levels had dropped.

The woman said her son transferred to another pre-school and had not fully recovered from his ordeal.

Firdhaus, who stood in the dock, apologised for what he had done.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Etsuko Lim told the court that Firdhaus went to his son’s pre-school at around noon on March 6, which was a Friday, and the boy was playing with the victim.

The victim then flashed a lewd hand gesture at Firdhaus, who called him over.

The child skipped towards his domestic helper, who was waiting at a bus stop outside the pre-school.

The bus stop was crowded with many other pre-school children, including the victim’s friends, and their families.

Firdhaus pursued the boy to the bus stop, seized him by the right arm, and confronted the helper.

The boy struggled in vain to break free.

Firdhaus told the helper to inform the victim’s parents that the child should not make such a gesture.

He also threatened to slap the boy and the woman apologised to him.

Frightened, the victim tried to hide behind a pillar, but Firdhaus pulled him out by his collar and slapped his right cheek with the back of his hand.

With one hand gripping the boy’s right arm, he slapped the child’s left cheek and left ear with his other hand.

The victim, who fell to the ground, experienced ringing in his left ear. The helper tried to pull him away from Firdhaus.

The DPP said: “Still gripping (the victim’s) right arm, the accused shoved a finger in his face, threatened to break his finger, and shouted that he would return...on Monday.”

Firdhaus then swung the boy backwards by his arm, causing him to stumble.

Only then did he release his grip on the child’s arm and left the scene.

Several pre-school children witnessed the incident, said the prosecutor. And a police camera captured the assault.

The victim was crying when he reached home, and his parents took him to KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital that day. The hospital alerted the police, and Firdhaus was arrested.

The DPP said the victim stayed away from school for several days.

Shaffiq Alkhatib is The Straits Times’ court correspondent, covering mainly criminal cases heard at the State Courts.