Man hammers friend out of jealousy

Man hammers friend out of jealousy

Both men were friends.

But when one of them got too close to the other's wife, something had to give.

Drunk and raging with jealousy after drinking too much beer, Lim Boon Cheow took it out on his friend.

He attacked Mr Quek Then Choon, 53, and damaged his car with a 65cm-long sledgehammer weighing 3kg.

Lim, 57, was yesterday sentenced to nine months' jail for voluntarily causing grievous hurt to Mr Quek two years ago.

A charge of committing mischief by damaging Mr Quek's car with the sledgehammer was taken into consideration.

The incident in Oct 4, 2012, began with Lim drinking 18 bottles of beer with a friend at a coffee shop.

He then headed home, where he confronted his wife about Mr Quek. He was upset that his friend was hanging out with her and giving her a ride home.

The court heard that Lim then left his flat and went to Jurong West, where Mr Quek lived. At about 11.30pm, he spotted Mr Quek walking home and took out a sledgehammer.

He went up to Mr Quek at the void deck and swung the sledgehammer at him. Caught off guard, Mr Quek raised his left arm to block the blow.

His left wrist was fractured and bruised as a result.

Lim fell and the injured Mr Quek took the opportunity to run away.

About 10 minutes later, Mr Quek called the police and said: "A friend of mine is drunk and smashed my car, and it is now damaged."

According to court papers, the front and rear windscreens, three side windows and front and rear headlights were damaged.

Mr Quek was given three days' medical leave for his injuries.

GOING OUT

In mitigation, defence counsel Vijay Kumar said Lim's wife had been going out with Mr Quek on a few nights and returned home "in the early hours".

Their relationship had embarrassed Lim and caused him severe emotional stress, said Mr Vijay.

As for Mr Quek's injuries, Mr Vijay said the victim had declined treatment and was only prescribed painkillers.

Lim has also paid about $7,800 - the full cost of repairs for the car - to Mr Quek, said Lim's lawyer.

He added that Lim was remorseful and did not run away from the scene, and he waited for the police and confessed to the offences. For causing grievous hurt, Lim could have been jailed up to 10 years, fined and/or caned.


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