Man admits to throwing Molotov cocktail at neighbour’s flat in Jurong West

SINGAPORE — Acting on the instructions of an unlicensed moneylender, Lu Mingduo threw an improvised Molotov cocktail at his neighbour’s Jurong West flat.

As a result, Mr Masor Omar, 64, and his teenage daughter had to climb out of the master bedroom window and stand on the window ledge till help arrived.

Four floors up, thick smoke filled into another neighbour, Mr Chua Kim Leng’s flat. But when the 51-year-old went down the staircase in a bid to escape, he was overcome by smoke and intense heat, and collapsed after suffering from smoke inhalation and burn injuries.

On Monday (Dec 3), Lu, 20, pleaded guilty to harassing Mr Masor on behalf of an unlicensed moneylender, and causing hurt to Mr Chua.

Two other charges under the Moneylenders Act will also be taken into consideration for sentencing next week. Principal District Judge Ong Hian Sun called for a report to assess whether he is suitable for reformative training.

The court heard that on Aug 7 this year, a day before the incident, Lu received a phone call from a caller who asked to speak to his father.

When Lu told him his father no longer lived there, the caller identified himself as an unlicensed moneylender called Sunny. His identity remains unknown.

Sunny then alleged that Lu’s father lived in the unit next door, and that he owed him money. In actual fact, Mr Masor’s son, who had taken a loan from Sunny in May, was the real target.

Sunny threatened to make trouble for Lu if the younger man did not harass the unit next door on his behalf. Lu then agreed to do so.

The next morning, Lu bought a bottle of paint thinner on Sunny’s instructions. Later that day, he followed Sunny’s instructions over Facetime, and made an improvised Molotov cocktail by stuffing a towel into the bottle, before using another towel to light the bottle.

Lu then threw the bottle at the main door of Mr Masor’s sixth-floor flat, but it did not explode. He was instructed by Sunny to throw it again, and this time, an electric bicycle parked outside the unit caught fire and exploded.

Realising what had happened, Mr Masor and his 13-year-old daughter climbed out of the master bedroom window and stood on the window ledge. They were later guided to safety by the Singapore Civil Defence Force.

Lu, who had run downstairs after seeing the fire escalate, was arrested by a plainclothes police officer at the first floor lift lobby.

At the same time, Mr Chua was having dinner at his 10th floor apartment. As thick smoke filled his home, he decided to leave and walked down the staircase as he thought the lift was not working.

When he reached the eighth storey staircase landing, he was overcome by the smoke and intense heat. He tried to walk up the staircase, but later collapsed at the 11th storey common corridor due to smoke inhalation and burn injuries.

Mr Chua spent 10 days in the hospital, and has incurred about S$600 in medical fees and costs so far. He is still required to return to the hospital for follow-up checks.

As a result of Lu’s actions, the total estimated cost incurred by the Jurong-Clementi Town Council for restoration works to the block came up to about S$10,500. Mr Masor estimated that the fire had caused about S$5,000 in damages to his unit.