Police investigating elderly man tearing plastic covering off seats at Chinatown

First, he was tearing plastic sheets off cordoned-off tables.

Then he hit a cleaning supervisor's arm for calling the cops on him.

An elderly man was filmed on April 13 tampering with the seat covers at Chinatown Complex Food Centre before getting into a heated exchange with police officers who arrived at the scene.

The police told AsiaOne that they received a call for assistance for a dispute that evening between an 82-year-old man and a female cleaning supervisor.

She was trying to stop him from tearing the plastic sheets used to cordon off seats as part of the government's elevated safe distancing measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus.

As the officers spoke to him, the woman approached the group and got into an argument with the elderly man.

He became agitated and hit her arm.

The police managed to calm him down and explained that the area had been cordoned off for public health.

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The man then told them that he had removed the plastic sheets because "they're an obstruction". 

When they asked him If he understood the gravity of the situation, the elderly man replied: "Yes, I know but we're not Malaysia" in Mandarin.

A hawker selling roast meat there told Shin Min Daily News that the man runs an electronics store in the same complex and had been tampering with the plastic sheets over the past few days.

He got bolder and started to tear the coverings off the tray return area and the tables until the cleaning supervisor called the police for help.

The man was returned to his family's care after the police contacted them.

Now, the police have classified the case as voluntarily causing hurt and mischief. They are also looking into possible breaches of safe distancing measures by the elderly man.

If found guilty of mischief, he may face a jail term of up to two years, a fine, or both.

Since April 7, customers are not allowed to dine in eateries such as hawker centres. Only hawkers can use the table nearest to their stall to take their meals.

For the latest updates on the coronavirus, visit here.

lamminlee@asiaone.com