PUBLISHED ONJuly 30, 2026 9:37 AMBYLim KeweiIrritated by his neighbour having a loud phone call along the common corridor, a man spewed vulgarities and retrieved a knife from his home.
Teo Kok Liang, 56, then pointed the 20cm-blade knife at the victim on the sixth floor of Block 90 Pipit Road.
The Singaporean was sentenced to 48 days' jail on Wednesday (July 29) after pleading guilty to a charge of criminal intimidation, and two other charges for voluntarily causing hurt and harassment in a second incident.
A fourth charge for failing to attend court on April 27 was taken into consideration for sentencing.
According to Shin Min Daily News, Teo was returning to his Pipit Road flat in February 2025 when he encountered his male neighbour talking on the phone along the corridor.
Teo scolded the man in Hokkien before reappearing with the knife.
The victim quickly told his two children playing along the corridor to return home. He also began filming Teo with his phone.
Noticing that he was being recorded, Teo turned around and hit the corridor railing with the knife, reported Shin Min.
The neighbour subsequently lodged a police report and Teo was arrested the same day.
He was given a conditional warning for the incident in March 2025, but breached the condition to stay crime-free for a year when he attacked another man this February.
Charge sheets seen by AsiaOne state that Teo had punched the man multiple times on the back of his head in a lift at Block 82A Circuit Road. He sustained bruises to his back and neck.
Teo also harassed him using a Hokkien insult at the lift lobby.
The victim is a cleaner at the block, according to Shin Min.
After Teo failed to attend court on April 27, an arrest warrant was issued, and he was arrested on June 25.
In court on July 29, Teo reportedly said that his mother is over 70 years old and suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure.
He asked for leniency to return home to care for his mother.
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