SINGAPORE: A teenager accused of raining blows on influencer Amos Yee at an anime convention in Suntec Singapore has been charged with one count each of assault and being a public nuisance.
Bosco Chun Ho Wang, 18, who appeared in court via video link from Central Police Division on May 11, is said to have committed the offences at around 2pm on May 9.
According to court documents, he allegedly punched and kicked Yee, 27, a child sex offender who was earlier dealt with in the US. Court documents did not state why Chun allegedly attacked Yee.
Chun is said to have been a public nuisance by shouting, as well as punching and kicking Yee.
Chun was offered bail of S$5,000 (US$3,933) and his case will be mentioned again in court on June 2.
Home-grown anime convention Doujima, also known as Doujin Market, was held in the convention centre’s halls 403 to 405 on May 9 and 10.
In videos circulating online on May 9, a person dressed for cosplay as manga series Jujutsu Kaisen protagonist Yuji Itadori is seen punching, kicking and stomping on a man as bystanders look on.
The person then briefly walks off before returning and leaping onto the man, bringing him to the ground.
He then proceeds to elbow the man, who is curled up on the floor, before being taken to one side by another person.
The man on the floor is seen holding his head before he stands up and walks off.
In an earlier statement, Doujima’s event organisers said on May 9 that the altercation occurred when Yee was no longer on the convention grounds.
Yee had approached event staff at the event’s entrance and was informed that he was banned. He left the convention area thereafter, said the organisers.
They added that Yee was banned from the convention and had his tickets cancelled after he had announced his intention to attend.
“We want to reiterate that we do not condone violence and our priority is the safety of our visitors and exhibitors,” they said.
“Doujin Market is and will always be a safe space for people who love creative arts and our community.”
On May 8, the organisers had said on Instagram that “a known problematic influencer” would be banned from the event, following reports from the public.
“We’ve cancelled his ticket and are working to ban him from all our shows. We take the safety of everyone at our convention very seriously,” the post stated.
Yee was earlier deported from the US on March 19.
He appeared in a Singapore district court the next day and was handed three charges under the Enlistment Act.
According to court documents in Singapore, Yee had failed to report for national service pre-enlistment medical screening and remained outside the country without a valid exit permit after leaving for the US in December 2016 to seek asylum.
Yee is said to have left Singapore without a valid exit permit from Dec 13, 2015, to April 19, 2016, and from Dec 15, 2016, to March 19, 2026.
During this period, he allegedly failed to report for national service medical screening from April 26, 2016, to March 19, 2026.
Yee fled to the US after repeated run-ins with the law in Singapore over comments he had made that were derogatory to Christians and Muslims.
In March 2018, he was granted asylum in the US, and in September that year, was released from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention.
In the lead-up to his deportation, Yee was transferred to various ICE facilities, with the most recent on March 18, when he was taken to the Broadview Service Staging Area in Illinois.
His record on the ICE website was expunged on March 19, and he was removed from the US the same day.
Yee was arrested by enlistment inspectors from the Central Manpower Base upon his arrival at Changi Airport, the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Home Affairs said in a statement on March 20.
The authorities said he was issued a document of identity to facilitate his return, in lieu of a valid Singapore passport, which he no longer holds.
Yee’s case is pending. - The Straits Times/ANN
