Jail for man who chained and hit 11-year-old son, causing perforated eardrum and other injuries
SINGAPORE — A divorced man, who forbade his 11-year-old son to contact his former wife, flew into a rage when the boy disobeyed his orders and slapped the child's face, causing a perforated left eardrum.
After that, the man repeatedly struck his son with a rubber water hose, causing multiple bruises.
On other occasions, he also punished his son by coiling a chain around either the boy's ankle or wrist before using a padlock to secure it to a fixed metal bar in the bathroom.
The court heard that the boy, now 13, could be chained for between two and five hours after his father caught him lying, failing to do his homework or contacting the man's former wife.
On June 14, the 53-year-old private-hire driver, who cannot be named owing to a gag order to protect the victim's identity, was sentenced to two years' jail after he pleaded guilty to three counts of ill-treating the child.
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Jocelyn Teo told the court that the man had custody of the victim following his divorce, and the father-and-son pair lived in a flat near Kallang Road.