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Woman placed pork on Muslim neighbour's door, threw another into flat the next day

HDB flats in Singapore. (Photo: Getty Images)
HDB flats in Singapore. (Photo: Getty Images)

SINGAPORE — An agitated neighbour who wanted to take “revenge” on a Muslim woman placed a piece of pork belly between her wooden door and gate.

Koh Siang Hong, 67, had been disturbed by the noise coming from the Muslim woman’s unit.

She pleaded guilty on Wednesday (19 January) to one count of deliberately wounding the religious feelings of the Muslim victim on 2 February last year.

Another count of a similar nature will be considered for her sentencing. This involves Koh throwing a piece of pork into the victim’s living room via the common corridor window, a day after she had placed the meat at the door. This offence was in full sight of the victim.

Koh has been assessed by a government psychiatrist to have been suffering from major depressive disorder at the time of the offences. The condition would have contributed to her impulsively placing the meat at her neighbour’s door, the prosecution told the court on Wednesday.

District Judge May Mesenas called for a mandatory treatment order (MTO) suitability report to assess if Koh could be given psychiatric treatment in lieu of a jail term, and prosecution did not object to it.

Angry at neighbour's family for being too noisy

The victim and her four children, aged four to 23, had been Koh’s neighbour at a flat in Boon Lay for six months prior to the offence. Koh had been angry with the family as she felt they were too noisy.

On the morning of 2 February last year, Koh felt agitated about disturbances from the victim’s unit, and decided to take “revenge” on the victim.

Knowing that the victim was a Muslim, Koh then took a piece of pork belly from her house and placed it between the gate and wooden door of the victim’s unit.

The victim, who was in the unit, saw Koh lurking outside her house. A while later, as she opened the wooden door to leave her flat, she discovered the piece of pork. The victim took a photograph of the meat and threw it away without confronting Koh. She made a police report later that day as she felt harassed.

On anti-depressant medication

Before calling for an MTO report, DJ Mesenas asked Koh’s lawyer, Nicholas Chang, if his client was currently undergoing treatment.

Chang replied that Koh was on anti-depressant medication and had a follow-up appointment at the Institute of Mental Health on 28 February.

Koh will return for her sentencing on 16 February. Deliberately wounding the religious or racial feelings of a person carries a jail term of up to three years, a fine, or both.

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