A Singapore court on Monday sentenced 65-year-old Chan Sui-kwan to six months in prison for “voluntarily causing hurt to deter a public servant from her duty.” Her 42-year-old son, Chan Wing-kwan, received a 10-day jail sentence for “voluntarily causing hurt,” as reported by Dimsum Daily.
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A view of shops at the departure hall of Changi Airport in Singapore April 4, 2024. Photo by Reuters |
The incident unfolded at Terminal 3 of Changi Airport on June 30, 2024. Court documents showed that the son became upset after wrongly believing people nearby were laughing at him. During the confrontation, he kicked his mother.
A 69-year-old passerby approached to check whether the woman was alright, but she told him to leave. Her son then confronted the man and challenged him to a fight, according to The Standard.
The dispute escalated on another level of the terminal, where the son kicked his mother again. When the bystander tried to contact the police, the son charged at him and the two men became involved in a struggle.
The son repeatedly punched the bystander, leaving the victim with a head haematoma, abrasions on his knee, and bruising to his fingers.
Police initially questioned the pair at the airport, recorded their passport details, and returned their travel documents. Later that day, however, officers encountered them again in the departure hall.
According to prosecutors, the mother refused to surrender her passport, caused a disturbance, and was subsequently arrested.
While officers attempted to detain her, she resisted and bit one officer on the right forearm through his clothing, the South China Morning Post reported.
The attack left a 1cm bite mark and bruising.
The mother first appeared in court on Nov. 18, 2024, while her son was charged on April 24, 2025. Both failed to attend a scheduled court hearing on July 22, 2026, prompting the court to issue arrest warrants. They were convicted on July 29.