Passer-by Doreen Chew was identified online for her heroic intervention after the mother of the boy posted an account of the incident that went viral.

SINGAPORE: A 29-year-old man was arrested after he allegedly kicked a 10-year-old boy unprovoked along Yishun Ring Road on Wednesday (Nov 29).

He was caught after a woman who saw the incident chased him down and brought him back to the scene before calling the police.



The police said they received a call for assistance at 12.30pm at a bus stop near Block 291 Yishun Street 22 and subsequently arrested the man under the Mental Health Act.

Ms Azlinda Rosman, the mother of the boy, said in a post on Facebook that her mother-in-law and two children were walking along the road to flag a cab on the way back from the market, when the assault happened.

According to Ms Azlinda, who was not at the scene, the man was walking in the opposite direction and kicked her son hard from the side for no apparent reason.

The boy fell and sustained abrasions on his ankle, she said.



"After doing so he just jolly well walked off from the scene ... Thank God, there's a brave lady who saw the incident (and) chased after him till the road divider of the nearest traffic light and even had a tough time talking to him into going back to the scene while the lady called the police.

"I didn't manage to see/meet/thank this kind soul. Whoever you are, may God bless you and your family."

She added in the post that another eyewitness told the police that, prior to the incident, the man had also slapped a younger child.

Ms Azlinda's post on Facebook went viral, garnering more than 2,500 shares within six hours.

The brave passer-by was identified in the comments as Ms Doreen Chew. Prior to Ms Azlinda's account, Ms Chew had also posted about the same incident.

"It seemed like an ordinary morning, my girl and I, just after a wonderful heavy breakfast, were on our way to buy her books when we heard a commotion. A young Malay boy, around my son's age and size, was flat on floor," she wrote.

According to Ms Chew, the boy, who was with two elderly relatives and a younger girl, called for help but no one responded. "I don't know what got into me, I just sprinted off and managed to catch up with that idiot at the traffic light junction. He had wanted to run away as the red man was on but I caught up with him in the middle of the junction," she recounted, comparing the scene to something from a movie.

Ms Chew said that when she caught up with the suspect, he was "very defensive and aggressive" and initially refused to return to the scene. However, he had "no choice" when she persisted.

As they walked back, he even punched Ms Chew from behind, she said.

"I turned and told him: 'One time I give you face okay ... Second time, I will hit you back. You don't try your luck.'"

He did not hit her again, but was "getting more aggressive" and "mindless(ly) ranting" along the way until police arrived.

"Though there was a danger that this mad man might attack me ... I can't stand seeing little kids, old people or small pets get bullied ... I can't stand and just look," Ms Chew wrote in her account.



Ms Chew added she had been feeling "deflated" recently and the incident was a "real booster" for her. "I know I helped them ... the feeling is super good!" she wrote.

"All (this) was witnessed by my girl and my girl beaming with pride said she is so proud of me! 'Super woman!!!'

"Nothing beats knowing my kids are as proud of me as I am proud of them."