SINGAPORE — Upset with his ex-wife for allegedly talking in a podcast about abuse and trauma in their relationship, Ismail Didih Ibrahim threw a Molotov cocktail at her front porch and sprayed a message on her house typically used by loan sharks.

He changed outfits to avoid detection but his actions were caught on closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage and in-car camera footage from a nearby vehicle.

The 37-year-old Singaporean, who worked as a manager at his parents’ restaurant, was on Thursday (Aug 18) jailed for nine months.

He will begin serving his sentence in a month’s time and remains out on bail of S$20,000.

He pleaded guilty in April last year to one count of mischief by fire or explosive substance with intent to cause damage, as well as another charge of leaving his home without a reasonable excuse during a Covid-19 semi-lockdown in 2020.

A third charge of committing mischief was taken into consideration for sentencing.

Records from the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority showed that Ismail is a shareholder in the popular Hjh Maimunah Catering business.

PSYCHIATRISTS' REPORTS

In his sentencing submissions on Thursday, Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Chong Kee En asked for 10 to 12 months’ jail.

He noted that three psychiatrists — two from the Institute of Mental Health and one from a private clinic — agreed that Ismail was suffering a relapse of his major depressive disorder, but seemingly differed on how the mental illness contributed to his offences.

DPP Chong told the court that he reviewed the psychiatrists’ reports and found their consensus to be that even though Ismail’s initial idea to throw a Molotov cocktail at his ex-wife’s house “could have been impulsive”, the execution was “intentional and showed significant premeditation”.

It was clear that Ismail had the ability to exercise self-control and restraint over his actions, the prosecutor argued.

As for the supposed trigger of Ismail’s attack — that is, the podcast his ex-wife did — DPP Chong noted that Ismail had presented a “skewed picture” of it to his psychiatrists.

Ismail claimed that in the podcast, which was released in November 2019, his ex-wife purportedly suggested that he had been irresponsible and emotionally abusive.

However, DPP Chong said that in the podcast, she did not mention him by name or give any identifying information, or even mention an ex-husband. She also appeared to refer to her personal experiences only twice and peripherally.

WHAT HAPPENED

The court earlier heard that Ismail committed the offences on the evening of May 12, 2020 — when regulations were in force to limit movements to curb the spread of Covid-19. 

The rules did not deter Ismail, who wanted to take revenge on his ex-wife, now aged 32, whom he married in 2017 and divorced in February 2019.

He retrieved an empty bottle and some flammable materials to make a hand-thrown weapon “with the idea to make his ex-wife ‘not be in peace’,” DPP Chong told the court.

Ismail drove to her house and parked in an adjacent street.

CCTV footage captured him going to his car boot and preparing a Molotov cocktail.

He was seen on the video glancing around to see if anyone was watching him.

After about five minutes, he walked over to the house and placed the bottle in some nearby bushes while he sprayed “O$P$” — used by loan sharks to mean "owe money, pay money" — on her house.

His ex-wife and her family were at home and had just broken their fast as it was the holy month of Ramadan at the time.

Ismail then lit the Molotov cocktail and threw it on the wooden front porch. 

It landed next to some wooden boards and his ex-wife’s car.

No one in the house noticed what had happened because they were all upstairs but a neighbour did and put out the fire with water. She also called the family down and they then called the police.

Ismail hurried away, removed his raincoat and disposed of his items in a nearby rubbish bin while walking back to his car. 

DPP Chong said: “He had changed his outfit in order to look different and to avoid detection. Due to the change in outfit, the police initially had difficulty locating the suspect.”

While the police initially thought the damage to the house was caused by illegal money lending, further investigations revealed Ismail had sprayed the O$P$ sign.

His ex-wife had to replace and repaint her car’s fender and mirror. The fire had also caused damage to the front porch’s floor tiles, walls and pillars.

The total costs of repair came up to between S$5,000 and S$6,000.

The incident left Ismail’s ex-wife feeling traumatised and unsafe which she said led to her seeing her counsellor more frequently and paying S$1,000 more. 

Her family also installed more CCTV cameras as they did not feel safe.

Ismail has voluntarily compensated her with S$5,000 and donated S$3,000 to three charities of her choice.

For mischief by fire, he could have been jailed for up to seven years and fined.

For leaving his home without a reasonable excuse, he could have been jailed for up to six months or fined up to S$10,000, or punished with both.