SINGAPORE: A woman who pointed a knife at a victim in a cafe and demanded S$200 (US$149) was jailed for 10 months on Thursday (Mar 27).
Lam Hoe Lian, 51, had picked up a knife and pointed it at the face of the diner, who had just finished her meal at Han’s Cafe & Cake House in Novena Square.
No harm was caused to the victim after the restaurant manager shouted at Lam, who put down the knife and left.
Lam pleaded guilty to one count of criminal intimidation.
The court heard that she has an intellectual disability and was suffering from a relapse of schizophrenia at the time, both of which contributed to her actions.
She was initially charged with attempted armed robbery before she was ordered to be remanded at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH) for medical examination.
On Aug 29, 2024, the victim was seated at a table at Han’s Cafe at Novena Square where she had just finished her food at about 9.30am. The fork and knife which she had used were on the table in front of her.
The victim was using her mobile phone as Lam walked towards her table and picked up the 23cm knife.
Lam then pointed the knife at the victim’s face, about 30cm away. She told the victim in Mandarin that she needed money and demanded S$200. Alarmed, the victim raised her hand but otherwise did not move.
Other diners at the cafe saw the incident. The cafe’s restaurant manager also saw the incident and shouted at Lam to put down the knife.
Lam then placed the knife on the table and walked away from the victim without taking anything. She left the cafe shortly after.
Lam was arrested on the same day and charged on Aug 30 last year.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Brian Tan sought 11 to 13 months’ jail for Lam after taking into account her psychiatric conditions.
Mr Tan cited Lam’s IMH report, which stated that Lam was cognisant of the offence and was aware that “she knew what she was doing” and that “she was doing something wrong at the time of picking up the knife”.
However, “her medical conditions may have contributed to poor frustration tolerance and poor judgment, as well as disorganised (thought) processes leading to the offence”, said Mr Tan.
He called for the court to take into account the immediate threat to the victim and the close proximity of the knife to her face.
In mitigation, lawyer Chong Shou En from the Public Defender’s Office sought 10 months’ jail, pointing to how the “interaction” of Lam’s intellectual disability and schizophrenia materially contributed to her offence.
He also argued that Lam had no record of violent offence or any history of being physically violent.
Taken in this light, the current episode was “an aberration in her behaviour”, said Mr Chong.
Deputy Principal District Judge Kessler Soh considered that Lam was a first-time offender and said he was prepared to accept the defence’s proposed sentence as “fair and appropriate”.
He told Lam that a counsellor would assist her so that she would not reoffend.
Criminal intimidation carries a jail term of up to two years, a fine, or both. If the threat is to cause death or grievous hurt, or to destroy property by fire, or to cause an offence punishable with death or with a jail term of seven years or more, an offender may be jailed for up to 10 years, or fined, or both.
