Jul 23, 2010
On probation for robbery
<!-- by line --> By Khushwant Singh
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<!-- end left side bar --> <!-- story content : start --> ANGRY that his girlfriend ended their relationship, ITE student Ow Boon Heng, 20, got a friend to go out with her in January so that both of them could steal her cell phone. For committing robbery, Ow and Marcus Lim Ong Jing, 19, were on Friday placed on probation for two years and ordered to do 240 hours of community service.
A district court heard that Lim arranged to meet his friend's ex-girlfriend on January 24 on the eight floor of a block of flats in McNair Road in Balestier. She thought he was a former friend of hers, also named Marcus, and did not recognise him. The full-time NSman held her in an armlock. Unable to breathe, the Chinese national, 15, who is studying here, fainted.
The duo then grabbed her wallet and cell phone and fled. The teen, who had wet herself because of the attack, sought help from a resident. Police were called and investigations revealed that the two friends had sold the cell phone to a dealer in Toa Payoh Central for $100 and split the money. Both could have been jailed two to 10 years and caned no less than six times.
Read the full story in Saturday's edition of the Straits Times.
