Man found guilty of sticking toothpicks in bus seats

SINGAPORE — Prosecutors are asking for jail to be imposed on a 60-year-old man who was convicted on Wednesday (Oct 11) of committing mischief by sticking toothpicks in seats of public buses on four occasions this year.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Rimplejit Kaur said an imprisonment sentence was warranted given that Lim Lye Seng went ahead to play the prank out of boredom even though he knew he could have hurt someone.

Lim, who is a landscape technician, also committed the acts of mischief more than once and had not made any restitution for the damage caused, the prosecutor added, without specifying the jail term she was seeking.

No passengers were hurt, but Lim’s actions caused damages amounting to about S$1,300.

Photos of the toothpicks poking out of bus seats began circulating online in July, when Lim perforated the seat of SBS Transit bus service 123M on three occasions.

He did it again on Aug 4, also on bus service 123M.

Lim was identified after extensive police investigations and through closed-circuit television footage.

On Wednesday, Lim, who was unrepresented, pleaded for leniency and asked the judge to impose a fine instead.

He said he has to support his two children aged eight and 13, as well as his elderly parents, who are in their 80s.

He will return to court again on Nov 6, where he is expected to be sentenced. For each count of committing mischief, he could be jailed up to a year, or fined, or both.