Hot topic of the week: Couple who bullied old man at Toa Payoh hawker centre identified

The identities of the couple who bullied an old man in a hawker centre at Block 210, Toa Payoh Lorong 8 and was subsequently arrested, have been revealed: The 39-year-old woman, works as a mathematics tutor at a institution, while the 46-year-old man, her husband, is a shareholder, and director of the same tuition centre. 

The couple had come under the spotlight after a video of the two surfaced online last Friday (April 21), in which the woman was first seen arguing with the elderly man who wanted to share a seat at their table. 

The two came to a impasse, when the woman’s husband suddenly shoved the old man from behind. 

After the incident came to light, the couple came under heavy flak from netizens and were subsequently arrested for causing public nuisance. 

The woman has 16 years of teaching experience, and has taught at primary schools and tuition centres, reports Lianhe Zaobao.

She started working at said tuition centre in 2011. 

Furthermore, information retrieved from the website of the tuition centre listed the woman’s subject of speciality as premium mathematics, and a large percentage of her students scored ‘A’s in their PSLE examinations under her tutelage. 

The tuition centre was started in May, 2011 by the man and two other partners.

 He also serves as the director of a higher learning institute and a renovation company. 

When reporters from Lianhe Zaobao interviewed the woman earlier, she told them that she was a manager in the tuition centre.

However, when reporters browsed the website yesterday, they discovered that information about the woman had been taken down.

A male relative of the woman told Lianhe Zaobao that the couple had met each other while travelling and had been together for more than ten years before getting married in Malaysia. 

According to the relative, the woman is a Singaporean, while her husband is a Permanent Resident (PR), and a former Malaysian. 

The relative also told reporters that the couple had previously stayed with him.

During their stay, the two employed a domestic helper at the time, who often quarrelled with said relative.

After the woman took the side of the helper during a fight, the relative, in a fit of anger, evicted the couple and their helper. 

He said he only realised that the couple had been arrested after hearing it from other relatives. 

When reporters visited the new address of the couple last Saturday (April 29), a slim man answered the door, but denied that he was the man in the video.

He then became impatient and shut the door before reporters could press on further.