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SINGAPORE, November 28 – Annoyed that he could not pass another driver while queuing at a gas station, Walter Goh Chong Han got out of the green Maserati he was driving and yelled offensive phrases at the other driver.
The other man and his family were at the Hari Raya Puasa festivities and were wearing their traditional Malay costumes.
During their verbal altercation, Goh yelled “Raya babi” at him, the last word that means “pig” in Malay.
The victim turned out to be an off-duty traffic cop.
Yesterday, Goh, 43, who was not represented by an attorney, was jailed for seven days for his actions.
He had pleaded guilty the day before to one count each of causing harassment and speaking words with the deliberate intention of hurting someone’s religious or racial feelings.
What happened
The court heard that the incident occurred on June 6 of last year.
The 51-year-old victim, who was not named in the court documents, and her three children, ages 12 to 17, had just left their home to make some visits during the Hari Raya Puasa celebrations.
He went to the SPC gas station along 100 Punggol Central to refuel his car, stopping behind another car to wait while all the pump lots were full.
At around 3.20pm, Goh entered the gas station and stopped his car at the right rear of the victim’s. The Maserati he was driving belonged to his mother.
Shortly after, the victim heard Goh sound his horn. He ignored Goh.
Unable to pass the other man’s car on the right, Goh backed up and drove to the other side.
Goh then pulled up next to the victim’s car and got out of his, hitting the side of the other car as he opened his own car door, causing a dent.
The two got into a verbal argument and Goh spoke the words “Raya babi” to the other man, who understood that it meant “pig celebrating the new year.”
Offended by this, the victim began exchanging vulgarities with Goh.
The victim’s 16-year-old daughter, who was sitting in the right rear seat of her father’s car, soon pulled out her mobile phone to record the dispute.
The video clips he took were played in court. At one point, Goh said to the victim, “Are you a police officer, huh, bro? Very well!”
He yelled more vulgar phrases in a mix of English and Hokkien, such as “police officer, shit, huh?”, And also spat on the ground in the direction of the victim’s car.
The other man told his son to call the police, but Goh left before the officers arrived.
Road rage
On Thursday, while seeking a seven-day jail sentence, Deputy Prosecutor (DPP) Lim Ying Min described it as a case of road rage and said Goh used the phrase to provoke the victim and that it was “extremely offensive. “.
He added: “Despite knowing that his words were offensive, the defendant did not stop. Instead, he continued to say ‘babi’ to the complainant and his family. “
When it was Goh’s turn to make his mitigation statement, District Judge Ng Cheng Thiam referred to his letter which said: “We started arguing and we both started exchanging profanity.”
Goh explained that both he and the victim had “exchanged a lot of vulgarity” and claimed that there was no car in front of the other man’s.
“I honked my horn many times and he refused to move. They weren’t pumping gas at me, I just needed to (pump) my tires. I made it ring for at least two or three minutes. The pump attendants asked him to move, but he just refused, ”Goh alleged.
DPP Lim replied that his claims were not supported by investigations, so District Judge Ng postponed the sentence to resolve the dispute.
Yesterday, the prosecution released footage from Goh’s car camera, which was played back in court.
The footage showed that no bomb attendants had approached the victim’s car or told him to move forward.
DPP Lim argued that Goh had fabricated his claims to mislead the court and this clearly showed his lack of remorse.
Goh told the court that he had nothing more to say. “I am so sorry and I promise I will never do something like this again in my life,” he added.
During sentencing, District Judge Ng noted that he was punishing Goh only for the crimes for which he was charged. “I have seen the video clips. I do not comment on the action or conduct of the complainant and his children because they were not presented to me, “added the judge.
For harassment, Goh could have been jailed for up to six months or fined up to S $ 5,000 (RM15,200), or both.
For hurting religious or racial sentiments, he could have been jailed for up to three years or fined, or both. – TODAY
