Man's 'vandalised' car turns out to be anniversary prank by his girlfriend

SINGAPORE - He had just finished exercising at Bedok Reservoir Park when a phone call from a friend informed him there was an "accident" at the park's carpark.

As Mr Sim Yumin rushed to the carpark, he saw the familiar sight of his Nissan Silvia S15 car.

From 50m away, he sensed something was amiss as his car was heavily vandalised.

Mr Sim, 36, who works in the storage solutions industry, told The Straits Times on Friday (April 21): "I just couldn't walk. I was speechless. I was angry and scared at the same time. Who have I offended?"

A few seconds later, a group of 15 friends jumped out from behind a parked van shouting "surprise!" last Wednesday night.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RHCeiB9sFeY[/embed]

It was a prank planned and executed by Mr Sim's girlfriend, Ms Shereen Tan.

Along with her friends, the pranksters, who took 40 minutes to complete their handiwork at a nearby multi-storey carpark, thought it would be a great way to celebrate the couple's 10th anniversary.

Said Ms Tan, 29: "I know that the Nissan is his (Mr Sim's) baby. But I had told the painter at the car workshop that I would be footing the bill for the new paintwork."

But netizens thought the Nissan, which had words like Prada Power, O$P$, Fat and Fabulous, had been vandalised by loanshark runners.

Images of his car began appearing on Facebook, multiple WhatsApp chat groups and citizen journalism portal Stomp, garnering more than 22,000 views as of Sunday (April 23) morning.

Added Mr Sim, who is now amused at the whole affair: "At traffic stops, people took out their mobile phones, smiled and snapped away. I didn't dare look at them. Now, I just can't wait to get my car professionally painted."

This article was first published on April 23, 2017.
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