Indian-origin jailed for hurting pregnant girlfriend in Singapore

A 24-year-old Indian-origin man in Singapore has been sentenced to ten weeks in jail for his penchant for violence, having no control over his rage and hurting his pregnant girlfriend. Mohamed Mustaffa Ali was sentenced on Wednesday by the Singapore District Court Judge Mathew Joseph after he pleaded guilty to two counts of assault - one was a road rage case last year and the other for hurting his pregnant girlfriend in 2017.

The judge also ticked off Mustaffa for his penchant for violence and having no control over his rage, reported The New Paper on Thursday.

The judge sentenced Mustaffa to 10 weeks’ jail, the report said. In the early hours of June 11, 2017, Mustaffa had quarrelled with his girlfriend Shahiqah Nadiyeh Mohammad Herman, then 21, over her former boyfriend.

The agitated Mustaffa slapped her face three times and kicked her thigh twice, despite knowing she was four months pregnant with his child, the report added.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng Jun Chong told the court that Mustaffa had also pulled her off a mattress she was sitting on in a cousin house.

“The accused then dragged the victim out of the room and into the corridor... by her legs,” Ng said.

His cousin then called the police. When the police arrived, Shahiqah refused to have a medical examination but told them she had bruises from Mustaffa’s assault.

She later gave birth to a healthy boy and married Mustaffa last December.

In another incident, in March last year, Mustaffa was driving a rented car on the extreme right lane of the Kranji Expressway at about 9pm when he flashed the high beam at a car travelling in front of him at 60 to 70km/h.

The car moved to the middle lane, but when the vehicles were side by side, both drivers wound down their windows to exchange vulgarities and rude gestures.

They then stopped their cars at the road shoulder and got out to confront each other.

When Mustaffa raised his hands, the other man, Lum Wai Keong, 49, punched him in the face.

Mustaffa returned to his car to grab a wooden stick about the length of two arms and hit Lum with it repeatedly until it broke.

Lum, who suffered abrasions on his knee and forearms, has been charged in court with assaulting Mustaffa. His case is pending.

Mustaffa told the court that he had hit Shahiqah after losing control of himself because of stress from his recent divorce.

“I find your actions quite disgusting and despicable,” the Judge told the accused.

“You used violence once before and you did it again. You think our Singapore roads are some kind of lawless place? I have no sympathy for your actions.”

He told Mustaffa that marrying the woman he hurt did not reduce his culpability. “Even though she is your wife now, that does not in any way diminish your responsibility.”

He then sentenced Mustaffa to six weeks’ jail for voluntarily causing hurt in the road rage case and four weeks’ jail for hurting Shahiqah.

Another charge for committing a rash act by pulling her off the bed was taken into consideration during sentencing.

For each count of voluntarily causing hurt, Mustaffa could have been jailed for up to two years, or fined up to SGD5,000, or both.

For committing a rash act, he could have been jailed for up to a year, or fined up to SGD5,000, or both.