Reformative training and probation reports called for teen who slashed fellow ITE student over staring case

• Palanidas Ramadas was upset that Muhammad Luth Hairie Mohammad Fathi was staring at him and his friends
• He told Luth to “settle their issues” at an ITE car park
• There, he slashed the fellow student with a bread knife
• Palanidas also pleaded guilty to using a man’s details to rent and drive a car, despite not having a licence

SINGAPORE — Upset that fellow student Muhammad Luth Hairie Mohammad Fathi was staring at him during lunch, Palanidas Ramadas approached him to “settle their issues” at the car park of the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) College East.

There, Palanidas slashed Luth with a bread knife, leaving him with deep cuts on his shoulder and ear.

On Thursday (Dec 2), Palanidas, 19, pleaded guilty to a charge each of voluntarily causing hurt by a dangerous weapon and illegally obtaining personal information, as well as two charges each of cheating by personation, driving without a licence and driving without insurance.

Deputy Presiding Judge S Jennifer Marie called for reformative training and probation suitability reports before she delivers her judgement on Jan 11 next year.

Reformative training is a regimented rehabilitation programme for offenders under 21 who commit relatively serious crimes, while probation is usually offered to first-time offenders between the ages of 16 and 21 and does not result in a criminal record.

THE ATTACK

Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Seah Ee Wei told the court that the attack on Luth, 19, took place at ITE College East in Simei on Feb 16 this year.

The teenagers were not acquainted, but Palanidas knew of Luth and did not have a good impression of him, she said.

Palanidas and Luth were having lunch at the canteen with their respective groups of friends when they began staring at each other.

DPP Seah said that this made Palanidas unhappy, so he approached Luth and got into an argument with him.

Palanidas later told Luth “to settle their issues outside” and asked Luth to go to the car park.

While heading there, Palanidas told a schoolmate to hand him a bread knife that the schoolmate had taken from home.

The 18-year-old schoolmate pleaded guilty in October to one charge of abetting Palanidas to voluntarily cause hurt to the victim with the knife, as well as one charge of conspiracy to commit robbery.

The youth cannot be named because he was 16 when he conspired to pull off a robbery in 2019 and is protected under the Children and Young Persons Act. He has since been sentenced to 27 months’ probation.

DPP Seah said that Palanidas wanted the knife because he thought “some people, not the victim, were coming to his school to cause trouble for him”.

A video clip of the attack, which was played in court, showed Luth walking to the car park alone.

Trailing him was a group of youth, including Palanidas, who ran up behind the teenager and attacked him with the knife.

DPP Seah said that despite attempts by Luth to shield himself, Palanidas swung the knife at him several times, including at his chest area.

Luth eventually fled and phoned his father, who in turn called the police. They arrested Palanidas a day after the attack.

Based on medical reports, Luth sustained deep cuts over his left shoulder and left ear, and incurred medical costs of about S$136.

DPP Seah said that at the time of the crime, Palanidas had been on police bail for another offence.

On Dec 9 last year, he illegally obtained the personal details of a 31-year-old man that he found on his friend’s phone and used the information to sign up for an account on Shariot, a car-sharing platform.

He then rented a car from the platform at around 2am on Dec 30 last year and took two friends for a ride, even though he did not have a driver’s licence.

He later told investigators that he learnt to drive by “seeing other people”.

The Traffic Police stopped him around 10.30am that day along the Pan-Island Expressway.

‘ASHAMED OF HIS ACTS’

Palanidas’ lawyer Kalaithasan Karuppaya said that his client would not be making any excuses for his actions and understood the trauma he had caused Luth.

The lawyer added that Palanidas was ashamed of his acts and had “stayed away from his negative peers that have been in his life”.

He also said that Palanidas has since been suspended from school but hopes to resume his education “upon completion of this matter”.

Seeking probation for the teenager, Mr Karuppaya said that as a young offender, Palanidas had the potential to be reformed and had the support of his family, who “take responsibility for his actions”.

DPP Seah, who sought reformative training, said that probation was not a realistic option on account of Palanidas’ many offences and their severity. 

“The attack arose out of a mere staring incident. There was no provocation by the victim — the accused approached him to quarrel with him,” she said.

For voluntarily causing hurt with a dangerous weapon, Palanidas could be jailed for up to seven years, fined or caned, or receive any combination of the three  punishments.

For illegally obtaining personal information, he could receive a jail term of up to three years or a fine of up to S$10,000, or both.

For cheating by personation, he could be put behind bars for up to five years or fined, or both.

For driving without a licence, he could face a jail term of up to three years or a fine of up to S$10,000, or both.

And for driving without insurance, he could be jailed for up to three months or fined up to S$1,000, or both.

In addition, Palanidas could be disqualified from holding or obtaining a driver’s licence for 12 months from the date of conviction.