Vigilante or bully? Netizens call out man who went overboard tackling alleged robber

Angered after witnessing a crime, a passer-by reportedly decided to take the law into his own hands.

A five-minute video shared by local Facebook group Tiagong on Wednesday (Sept 21) showed a man in a singlet taunting the alleged robber. "Why do you have to run if you've not done anything wrong?"

While the latter was pushed to the ground by this passer-by, a man filming on the sidelines accused him of trying to rob a woman.

The alleged robber tried to protest his innocence in Malay while apparently limping away in pain, but the passer-by grabbed his hooded jacket and threw him into a nearby bush.

"You just sit down and don't run," the man in a singlet said. "You aren't sick so don't cheat people."

But in a desperate attempt to escape, the alleged robber threw himself over the bushes while screaming at the passing vehicles for an ambulance - only to be thrown back to the pavement by the passer-by and told that the police had been called.

Concerned with the man's well-being after seeing him lying on the ground and complaining about being breathless, another passer-by approached the group.

"He's not in pain, it's just for show. Don't care about him," the man filming the bizarre sequence of events said. "This is so fake. He still can walk."

From the video, it is unclear where the incident, which took place in Singapore, was filmed at.

In the comments, several netizens felt that the passer-by went overboard by dealing with the alleged robber.

"Should have detained [the robber] or call police. Now [the passer-by] will get assault charges instead," a netizen said.

Another said: "Don't act hero by beating him up."

Others were amused with the alleged robber's antics.

Under section 98 of the Penal Code, it states that any harm caused to an offender must not be excessive in the circumstances.

The right of private defence can only be exercised if there is no reasonable opportunity for you to seek protection from a public authority, such as the police.

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chingshijie@asiaone.com