SINGAPORE — Upset that a man had befriended his girlfriend, Mohamed Zamirhans Mohamed Yunos confronted him in East Coast Park while armed with two knives.

The other man managed to flee on his bicycle and Zamirhans was soon arrested at the nearby Neptune Court condominium, where he worked as a security guard. 

On Thursday (Oct 24), the 26-year-old was sentenced to six months’ jail and six strokes of the cane. 

He pleaded guilty to criminally intimidating Muhammad Rahmat Muhammad Kamal and being armed with offensive weapons, with another two charges taken into consideration for sentencing.

The court heard that Zamirhans spent his nights at a park shelter and got to know his girlfriend and Rahmat there.

Zamirhans had argued with Rahmat on a few occasions before. Once was when Zamirhans allegedly damaged the charger of an electric scooter belonging to Rahmat’s girlfriend. Zamirhans was also unhappy about Rahmat befriending his girlfriend.

When Zamirhans’ girlfriend grew concerned that he would seek out the other man, she went to his security guard post at the condominium on June 20 to try to calm him down.

However, he refused to listen. He proceeded to take out two boxes containing two knives from his sling bag that he had taken to the condominium earlier that day, and hid the knives in his trousers.

Taken aback by what she saw, she tried to physically hold him back. However, he pushed past her and after she fell to the ground, he walked quickly to East Coast Park to confront Rahmat.

Rahmat, who was with his own girlfriend at the time at the park shelter, received several text and voice messages on WhatsApp from Zamirhans.

In one message, Zamirhans wrote in Malay that he was on the way to the shelter. “If you are not there, (your girlfriend) will be cut/slashed by me, okay!” he added.

When Zamirhans reached the spot, he shouted at Rahmat to come to him before taking one of the knives from his trousers.

Rahmat fled and shouted at his friend, who was nearby, to run away from Zamirhans. Rahmat then got a member of the public who was at a barbecue pit with her family to call the police.

Police officers went to the Neptune Court condominium and found Zamirhans there with a cut on his fingers. By then, he had already disposed of the knives and the boxes holding them.