Probation for teen with history of killer-litter acts

A teen with a history of killer- litter offences was ordered to undergo 36 months' probation yesterday.

Abdul Hamid Rahmat, 16, had catapulted a bicycle wheel from a high floor of a Housing Board block, injuring a woman severely. She died three weeks later. He committed the offence last May while out on police bail for throwing bricks, tiles and other heavy objects from the same block in Eunos Crescent where he lives.

District Judge Lim Keng Yeow called his acts reprehensible and inexcusable, which clearly called for censure from society and severe condemnation from the courts.

Under the probation order, the teen has to be accompanied by an adult at all times outside the Singapore Boys' Hostel, where he is to stay for 12 months, as well as any time he is outside his home, until his risk of re-offending is assessed to have been lowered. His next progress review is on May 11.

He also has to observe a curfew, undergo psychiatric and psychological treatment and counselling, and perform 200 hours of community service.

His mother and stepfather were bonded for $8,000 to ensure his good behaviour. Abdul Hamid is said to have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and attends a special needs school in Katong.

The court heard that Madam Mahani Abdullah, 67, was walking past the block on May 16 last year when a bicycle wheel landed on her head from the 14th floor, causing her to black out. Complications set in from her head and spinal cord injuries that eventually resulted in her death on June 6.

Abdul Hamid had also endangered the life of a 25-year-old Myanmar national, whose hand was injured by a brick he hurled from the 12th floor on Dec 13, 2013.

He threw two ceramic tiles, a water dispenser and a 5kg dumbbell from various floors on Aug 24 the same year.

Judge Lim denounced his "troubling series of repeated offences", which he said were not merely impulsive or reactive responses on the spur of the moment. Neither did they arise from unthinking carelessness or as a result of his judgment being clouded. "He acted with clarity of mind. There was a disturbingly high level of premeditation and planning prior to the offences, and a worrying measure of deviousness in how he sought to conceal his acts and to avoid being caught after carrying out the offences," he said.

The rehabilitative regime and environment, he said, must be one that best addresses the underlying causes of his offending and meets the unique needs in this case, while not compromising public safety.

This article was first published on March 10, 2015.
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