Driver charged with vandalism, rash act

He had flashed a wide smile for photographers from the back of a police car.

But the Singapore permanent resident's smile disappeared when he was presented before a judge on Monday morning.

Tan Chu Seng (right), 64, was charged with vandalism and causing hurt by a rash act.

Tan had arrived at the Woodlands Checkpoint on Friday around 4pm and had cleared immigration.

He then proceeded to the secondary check area in his gold-coloured Mercedes-Benz.

When he was told to flip open the spare tyre compartment, Tan got into his car and bolted. In his escape bid, he had allegedly driven his Singapore-registered car in a rash manner, hurting a bystander.

He is also accused of vandalising a security barrier when he ploughed through it.

A 20-second video clip circulating online shows security officers surrounding the car, which briefly comes to a stop at the barrier. Then the car goes over it.

For more than five hours on Friday, the police were on a manhunt for Tan. He was nabbed at 9.15pm.

On Monday in the State Courts, Tan requested that his remand be shortened to four days due to his hypertension and diabetes.

But the judge insisted that Tan, who was not represented by a lawyer, be remanded for a week pending police investigations.

If found guilty of a rash act, he can be jailed up to a year or fined a maximum of $5,000, or both. For vandalism, he can be fined up to $2,000 or be jailed up to three years.

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