Singaporean fined RM5,500 after viral road rage incident in Johor

MUAR: A Singaporean involved in a road rage incident on the North-South Expressway (NSE) has been fined RM5,500 by a Magistrate's Court, here.

Soh Kian Hui, 45, pleaded guilty to causing over RM2,500 worth of damage to a car during the altercation.

Soh, a taxi driver, made the plea after the charges were read to him in English in front of Magistrate Fatin Dalilah Khalid, on Wednesday (Feb 14).

According to the charge sheet, Soh damaged the rear windscreen of a Toyota Fortuner using a cane after a heated argument with the 31-year-old owner of the vehicle.

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The incident occurred at 1.58pm on Feb 10 at KM139.6 of the NSE in Pagoh, Muar. The damage caused amounted to RM2,502.35.

Soh's offence falls under Section 427 of the Penal Code for committing mischief, which could lead to a jail term of one to five years or a fine, or both, upon conviction.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Mohamad Ariff Marzuki handled the case's prosecution, while Norain Sakina Zikri represented Soh.

During the proceedings, Norain mentioned that Soh was currently caring for his 71-year-old mother, who is recovering from cancer and has Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) disease.

“Soh also earns approximately SGD3,000 (RM10,626) monthly and has no prior criminal record in the country. He has also cooperated fully with the police,” she said.

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Mohamad Ariff requested a heavier fine as a deterrent not only for Soh but also for other road users, citing the dangerous location of the incident where Soh stopped his vehicle.

The court imposed the fine, which, if not paid, could lead to 12 months' jail time. Soh paid the fine.

Earlier, it was reported that Johor police chief Comm M. Kumar said a foreign man in his 40s was arrested following the road rage incident on the NSE.

The arrest, made by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) at 3.30am on Monday (Feb 12) in Genting Highlands, Pahang, was in response to a report lodged at 2.36pm on Feb 10.

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A 54-second video of the altercation had gone viral on social media.

"Early investigation found that the incident was caused by the victim blocking the suspect's vehicle (on) the emergency lane along the highway.

"This caused the suspect, who we believe to be a foreigner, to be dissatisfied, so he got out and broke the rear window of the victim's car," he said.