The Police have arrested three men for their suspected involvement in relation to a case of voluntarily causing hurt to deter a Traffic Police (TP) officer from discharge of his duty.
Background of incident
On 28 October 2021 at about 9.50am, a Traffic Police (TP) officer was patrolling in the vicinity of Upper Paya Lebar Road when he spotted a suspicious car, and signalled for the driver to stop, in order to conduct a check. However, the driver sped off and the officer gave chase.
During the pursuit, the driver was believed to also have collided into the rear of an unknown vehicle along Macpherson Road, before continuing to flee in the car. By this time, another TP officer had joined the pursuit. When the car turned into Geylang East Avenue 1, it came to a stop. The first pursuing TP officer then moved ahead of the car to attempt to intercept it.
However, the car suddenly reversed against the flow of traffic and purportedly collided into the oncoming second TP officer who was pursuing behind the said car. The said officer managed to jump off his motorcycle in the nick of time and avoided serious injuries. After the collision, the car purportedly continued to reverse without stopping and made an illegal u-turn before speeding off.
Three men arrested for various offences
The car was later found abandoned along Geylang East Central. Upon the arrival of TP officers, the driver had already fled the scene, while the male passenger was seen standing outside the car. When TP officers engaged the 34-year-old male passenger, he was uncooperative. The man purportedly started to raise his voice, hurled derogatory terms at, and pushed the officers at scene. Necessary force was used to restrain the man. The 34-year-old passenger was subsequently arrested for using criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty under Section 353 of the Penal Code, and suspected drug-related offences. The offence of using criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of his duty carries an imprisonment term of up to four years, a fine, or both. The passenger will also be investigated for disorderly behaviour, under Section 20 of the Miscellaneous Offences (Public Order and Nuisance) Act. For first-time offenders, the offence carries a fine of up to $2,000, imprisonment for up to six months or both; for subsequent offences, the offence carries a fine not exceeding $5,000, imprisonment of up to 12 months, or both.
A manhunt operation involving officers from TP, Police Operations Command Centre (POCC) and Police Intelligence Department (PID), was immediately mounted to trace the whereabouts of the driver. With the assistance of Police cameras (PolCams) and the use of Video Analytics (VA), officers were able to locate the 37-year-old male driver and arrest him along Yishun Street 51 within four hours from the time of incident.
The driver is being investigated for multiple offences, including:
- voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from the discharge of his duty under Section 332 of the Penal Code;
- failing to stop when ordered by a police officer in uniform under Section 127(5) of the Road Traffic Act;
- dangerous driving under Section 64(1) of the Road Traffic Act;
- driving without a valid licence under Section 35(1) of the Road Traffic Act;
- failing to stop after an accident under Section 84(1) of the Road Traffic Act;
- using a vehicle without insurance under Section 3(1) of the Motor Vehicles (Third Party Risks and Compensation) Act; and
- suspected consumption of controlled drugs.
In addition, the driver was also wanted by the Police for cheating under Section 420 of the Penal Code.
Investigations revealed that the car used in the alleged commission of voluntarily causing hurt against the TP officer was a rental vehicle, which was rented by a 22-year-old man. The 22-year-old hirer has also been arrested for an offence of permitting one to drive without valid licence under Section 35(2) of the Road Traffic Act. For first-time offenders, the offence carries a fine of up to $10,000, to an imprisonment term of up to three years, or both. For repeat offenders, the offence carries a fine of up to $20,000, imprisonment of up to six years, or both.
Investigations are ongoing for the alleged offences committed by three men.
Offences and penalties
The 37-year-old man will be charged in court on 30 October 2021 with voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from the discharge of his duty under Section 332 of the Penal Code, Chapter 224. The offence carries an imprisonment term of up to seven years, and a fine or caning.
Persons who commit traffic offences may face the following penalties:
- Under Section 35(1) of the Road Traffic Act, motorists caught driving without a valid licence shall be liable, upon conviction, to a fine not exceeding $10,000, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three years, or both.
- Under Section 84(1) of the Road Traffic Act, motorists who fail to stop after an accident, shall be liable to a fine not exceeding $3,000, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both.
- Under Section 3(1) of the Motor Vehicles (Third Party Risks and Compensation) Act, motorists caught using a vehicle without insurance shall be liable to a fine not exceeding $1,000, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months, or both. Motorists may also face disqualification from driving all classes of vehicles upon conviction.
Firm action will be taken against those who endanger public safety
Commander of Bedok Police Division, Deputy Assistant Commissioner of Police (DAC) Heng Chih Yang said: “The job of a police officer is highly unpredictable in a dynamic environment. Police officers face risks in their daily work. Despite this, our officers remain steadfast in their duties to keep Singapore safe and secure. It was fortunate that our TP officer did not suffer more serious injuries. His training, experience and instinct to get out of harm’s way, saved his life. The Police take a serious view of any abuse or acts of violence towards police officers who are carrying out their duties. We will continue to take firm action against those who blatantly disregard the law and endanger the safety of public servants or road users.”
The Police have zero tolerance towards such brazen acts of violence towards Police officers or public servants carrying out their duties. The Police will not hesitate to take firm action against those who blatantly disregard the law.
All motorists are urged to drive safely and to abide with traffic rules and regulations. TP will not hesitate to take firm action against motorists who choose to endanger the safety of other road users as well.
Source: Singapore Police Force
