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Man jailed for beating up taxi driver after quarrel with wife

SINGAPORE — When taxi driver Low Yew Yeng tried to get a tipsy passenger to pay his fare, the man responded by punching him repeatedly on his face.

Mohd Zainie Mohd Husainie was drinking alcohol before he boarded a taxi and later assaulted the driver along Yishun Avenue 1.

Mohd Zainie Mohd Husainie was drinking alcohol before he boarded a taxi and later assaulted the driver along Yishun Avenue 1.

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SINGAPORE — When taxi driver Low Yew Yeng tried to get a tipsy passenger to pay his fare, the man responded by punching him repeatedly on his face.

Mohd Zainie Mohd Husainie, also known as Clayton Malcolm Mitchell, assaulted Mr Low along Yishun Avenue 1 last year.

Zainie, a 44-year-old restaurant manager, was jailed six weeks on Tuesday (July 9) after pleading guilty to a single charge of causing hurt to Mr Low, 59.

The court heard that at about 10.30pm on July 7 last year, Mr Low drove to Holland Village and picked up Zainie, who had been drinking alcohol earlier that evening.

Then they went to pick up Zainie’s wife from Shaw House along Orchard Road, and the couple began arguing in the backseat. 

When Mr Low stopped his taxi at a traffic-light junction along Yishun Avenue 1, Zainie got out of the vehicle and walked off. His wife alighted as well and tried to get him to return to the taxi. 

Worried that they were going to walk away without paying the fare, Mr Low opened his car door and shouted at them, then unbuckled his seat belt with the intention of chasing after them.

However, before he could get out, Zainie forcefully closed the door on Mr Low’s right arm and shoulder.

Mr Low managed to get out and asked for the fare again, but Zainie punched him on the cheek.

When Mr Low fell to the ground, Zainie continued boxing him several times in the face.

Another driver at the junction got out of his vehicle and, noticing that Zainie smelled strongly of alcohol, held him back.

Zainie has since made full restitution of S$822 for his victim’s medical bills. He has also paid up the fare.

In mitigation, his lawyer Mansurhusain Akbar Hussein told the court that the dispute occurred because of “misdirected anger”, as Zainie was arguing with his wife before the assault happened. He has apologised to Mr Low.

Mr Mansurhusain, who asked for two to three weeks’ jail, added that Zainie’s wife is about to give birth soon.

“A long custodial sentence will cause problems for not only his wife, but his family,” the lawyer said.

This cut no ice with District Judge Jasvender Kaur, who said that the misdirected anger was, in her opinion, not a mitigating factor at all.

For causing hurt, Zainie could have been jailed up to two years, fined up to S$5,000, or both.

Related topics

crime court assault taxi driver fare drunk

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