SINGAPORE: A 47-year-old man who abused his Vietnamese wife, breaching a personal protection order she had against him, was sentenced to jail for two months and four weeks on Tuesday (Nov 27).
Seah Kian Beng admitted to punching, slapping and choking his wife of about four years, 48-year-old Truong Bich Hue, who is in Singapore on a Long-Term Dependant's Pass.
Advertisement He pleaded guilty to eight charges, including offences under the Women's Charter and charges of voluntarily causing hurt, with another eight charges taken into consideration.
The abuse began on Oct 17, 2016, when Seah returned to his home in Bukit Batok one night. He began shouting and scolding his wife for no apparent reason, the prosecutor said.
Ms Truong went to the void deck, followed by her husband, before running home to hide in her room.
In the room, Seah threw a punch on her right cheek and twisted her hand before shoving her and choking her neck in a stranglehold to prevent her from calling the police.
Advertisement Advertisement When he released his grip and left the room, Ms Truong locked the door. She saw her husband outside with a penknife in his hand. He said in Mandarin: "I will kill you and throw you down the building."
Later that night, Ms Truong lodged a police report.
In April this year, the couple got into more scuffles, with Seah pushing his wife during a quarrel about lunch on one occasion and pulling her hair over a dispute about fruit on another.
Later that month, Seah slapped his wife after drinking beer and arguing with her.
Not long after, in May, Ms Truong met her husband to buy groceries but saw that he was drunk. He tried to argue with her, but she ignored him.
However, after they returned home, Seah shouted at his wife, growing angry when she refused him money for cigarettes.
He used his right shoulder to push her, causing her to fall, then used his hands to push her again so that she fell once more.
Ms Truong called the police again, saying that her husband was causing trouble and refusing to let her bathe.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Angela Ang asked for a jail term of two months and four weeks, noting that Seah had previously been convicted of drink driving and disorderly behaviour.
ACCUSED SAYS VICTIM ALSO HOPES FOR LENIENCY
Seah, who was unrepresented, said through a Mandarin interpreter that he was under a lot of stress at work as he was under a heavy financial burden.
He said he had been working as a mechanical engineer and had to service a monthly loan with "very high interest", adding that his flat was in danger of being repossessed.
He pleaded for leniency, saying that he had spoken to his wife - who was present in court - and she said she was hoping for leniency as well as she was afraid that the flat would be repossessed.
District Judge Eddy Tham said he understood that there may be "life stressors" that could affect Seah's family. However, he added, having alcohol and violence together was "a recipe for disaster".
The court needs to protect spouses from violent behaviour, he said.
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