SINGAPORE — Upset that his request for money had been repeatedly rejected, a teenage stabbed and slashed his father with a steak knife.

At the State Courts on Tuesday (28 May), Dylan Loy Zhong Huan – now aged 19 –was sentenced to reformative training, a rehabilitative sentencing option for offenders under 21 who are found to be unsuitable for probation. Inmates under the programme undergo a strict regime and can be detained for up to three years.

Loy had earlier pleaded guilty to one charge of causing grievous hurt to his father in the 2016 incident. He is currently out on bail pending an appeal against the sentence.

Accused claimed to be working on survey

The court heard that the then 16-year-old Loy began living with his paternal grandfather since November 2016. Prior to moving in he had asked his father, Loy Shiang Chian, for money.

According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Michelle Lu, the younger Loy claimed he needed $3,000 from his father – now aged 49 – to “pay for Uber rides as part of his work to survey Uber drivers on behalf of Grab”.

However, the elder Loy transferred him only $1,000.

After spending the money, the teenager asked for the remaining amount a few times, but was repeatedly rejected.

At about 6am on 29 November 2016, the younger Loy asked for $2,000 from his grandparents but they also rejected his request.

He then decided to confront his father and visited the latter’s home at about 7am armed with an 8cm steak knife.

Victim slashed, kicked and punched

At about 8.30am, when the elder Loy was leaving home for work, he spotted his son hiding behind a shoe cabinet outside the unit.

“The accused demanded to know why the victim did not give him the money as requested, and he stated pushing and shoving the victim,” said DPP Lu.

The father warned the teenager not to touch him, and told him that he would not be giving him any money and that he needed to leave for work.

But the teenager continued to push and shove his father until the latter dropped his key pouch. The teenager then picked it up and threw it towards a drain along the corridor outside the flat.

As his father was picking up the key pouch, the younger Loy drew out the steak knife and stabbed the back of his father’s head two to three times.

The older man stumbled and fell to the ground, while the younger Loy took the key pouch. When the father screamed for help and tried to stop his son from using his key to enter the flat, the teen stabbed, slashed, kicked and punched his father multiple times.

The father continued screaming for help and tried to fend off the blows with his hands. The teen then shoved a pink recyclable bag into his father’s mouth. When the latter took the bag out, the teen shoved it back into his mouth.

A neighbour who heard the commotion called the police.

Following a medical examination, the elder Loy was found to have sustained a fracture to his right hand, among other injuries.

As a result of the incident, the father and remaining members of his family decided to temporarily move out of their home out of concern for their own safety.

The court heard that the teen and his father have not reconciled since the incident. Both the father and grandfather, who attended court on Tuesday, remained expressionless as Loy’s sentence was read out.

The maximum punishment for causing grievous hurt with a weapon is up to 15 years’ jail, along with a fine or caning.

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