Man fined for throwing hot milk at doctor

A homeless man who splashed a jug of hot milk at a doctor after she wrote that he was prone to tantrums was fined the maximum $1,500 yesterday.

When Parvathy Babu Surendra Babu refused to delete the comment, 63-year-old Abdul Aziz Selamat told her that he would "show what a tantrum was", before grabbing the jug from a nearby pantry at Thye Hwa Kwan Hospital.

The 31-year-old doctor suffered from redness on her face and chest after the attack.

Aziz was originally charged with acting rashly to endanger the personal safety of others, but admitted to an amended charge of using criminal force on Sept 3.

The court heard that he had been referred to the hospital for rehabilitation following surgery.

Dr Parvathy stated in her summary form that Aziz threw tantrums almost daily and often created trouble for hospital staff.

Two days after his discharge, Aziz returned to the hospital to retrieve his mobile phone charger. He met Dr Parvathy and asked her to delete the adverse comments but she refused, sparking his anger.

He threw milk at the doctor's face and chest, and she ran tap water over the affected area. The redness subsided the next day.

The prosecution admitted to being unable to ascertain the temperature of the milk.

The court heard that Aziz had been afraid that the adverse comments would affect his applications for a Housing Board flat and financial assistance.

Foo Juyuan, who represented Aziz under the Criminal Legal Aid Scheme Fellowship, urged the court not to jail the man, citing his medical ailments, ill health and financial trouble.

He said Aziz, who is jobless, volunteers at Mercy Centre twice a week by packing and delivering food to fellow homeless people.

The lawyer said Aziz is trying to get a licence to busk around Singapore.

The man could have been jailed for up to three months on top of the fine.

elena@sph.com.sg

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