ANGRY with the bus driver for pestering him to pay the fare,
Balbir Singh lost his cool and kicked him.
For that, he was jailed for four weeks on Friday by a district
court.
Singh's lawyer S.K. Kumar sought to argue that the bus driver
had only suffered a bruise and the court should impose a fine.
But the judge said that a jail term was clearly called for.
The incident occurred after Singh, 45, a logistics officer,
boarded the bus at the Woodlands interchange at 10.30pm on Feb 16
to get to his Woodlands home.
Bus driver Yap Eyu Kiong,
56, noticed he took a seat without bothering to pay
the fare.
When the bus driver reminded him a second time, Singh
erupted.
The court heard that he shouted at Mr Yap before kicking him
once on the left leg.
Police were called in.
A medical examination revealed that Mr Yap did not need medicine
or medical leave for his injury.
Lawyers told The Straits Times that Singh can expect to spend
between $5,000 and $7,000 on legal costs for Friday's hearing and
for the appeal.
That, one lawyer said, could pay for a lot of bus rides.
--ST
Poor BC, but why did the other passenger did not help?
