Drunk Indian national charged for assaulting police officer in Singapore

Singapore, June 12

A 25-year-old Indian national faces jail time after he was charged by a court in Singapore with attempting to assault a police officer and causing annoyance to the public while being drunk.

Murugesan Ragupathiraja faces 10 charges, three of which were committed on Sunday when he attempted to assault a police officer at an apartment block in the Everton Park housing estate.

He was also charged for causing annoyance to the public while drunk in the estate and committing mischief by kicking two wooden benches at a nearby Duxton Plain Park.

Police arrested him by firing teaser shots on his legs which disabled him, a video on social media showed. He was also shown arguing with the police officers while drinking from a can and taking a swing at the police officer.

Responding to a public call, police arrived on the scene on Sunday afternoon to check on the disturbance he was causing to members of the public and damage to public property he was causing in the estate.

Murugesan’s previous charges include robbing a man of SGD 160, an ATM card and a bag after rubbing red powder, believed to be chilli powder, into the victim’s eyes, spitting at an auxiliary police officer and slapping each side of an auxiliary police officer’s face.

He is set to return to court on July 9.

If found guilty of causing annoyance to the public while drunk, he could be jailed for up to six months, fined a maximum of 1,000 Singaporean dollars, or both.

If convicted of assaulting a police officer to deter him from discharging his duty, he could be jailed for up to four years, fined, or both.

For damaging the wooden benches, he could be jailed for up to two years, fined, or both. PTI