Short detention order for man over criminal force on private-hire driver

Published Sep 07, 2026, 05:14 PM

Updated Sep 07, 2026, 05:14 PM

Oruche Morgan Fidelis used criminal force on driver Low Ek Yong in June 2024.

Low who was later found with a fractured skull and a brain injury.

He died of heart disease and large bowel obstruction in June 2025.

SINGAPORE – After consuming alcohol in June 2024, a man took a private hire car to his Clementi home and used criminal force on the driver, who was later found lying on the road.

On Sept 7, British national Oruche Morgan Fidelis, 23, was sentenced to a five-day short detention order (SDO) and 100 hours of community service.

Offenders with SDO will not have a criminal record after their release.

After serving his SDO, Oruche will have to perform his community service within a year under an authorised officer’s supervision.

He had earlier claimed trial to one count of voluntarily causing hurt to 66-year-old driver Low Ek Yong, who was found with a fractured skull and a brain injury.

Low died of other causes – heart disease and large bowel obstruction – a year later.

Following the trial, Oruche pleaded guilty to an amended charge of using criminal force on the victim.

Court documents stated that he had stepped out of Low’s vehicle with his left arm raised towards the older man.

The gesture amounted to assault under the law, as it had caused Low to apprehend that Oruche was about to use criminal force on him.

In amending the charge, District Judge John Ng noted that although Low had suffered head injuries, it could not be ascertained how he sustained them – whether he was assaulted or had tripped and fallen.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Benjamin Low stated in his submissions that at around 5pm on June 12, 2024, the offender accompanied his boss to meet two clients for drinks at a Circular Road pub near Boat Quay.

Oruche consumed about three pints of beer before heading to a Marina Bay bar, where he drank more alcoholic drinks.

He left at around 10.30pm, booked a ride with transport provider Grab, and entered the victim’s car.

Oruche sat in the rear, put on his AirPods and fell asleep.

He was still sleeping when the car pulled up outside his home at around 11pm.

The prosecution’s case was that the victim tried to wake Oruche, but he remained unresponsive

“The victim then got out of the vehicle and... tried to rouse the accused from his slumber by shaking the accused,” said the DPP.

According to the prosecutor, Oruche became angry, lunged at the victim and pushed him .

The man ended up in a minimally conscious state, and could neither move on command nor respond to external stimuli.

Oruche was represented by lawyers Shashi Nathan, Harjeet Kaur and Tan Jia Yi from Withers KhattarWong .

During the trial, Oruche testified that he “stumbled” out of the car, and did not recognise the person who was shaking him.

He also told the court that the driver punched him on the left side of his face, and he hit back in self-defence. “I was scared that he was going to hit me again,” he added.

Oruche’s mother heard the commotion and alerted his father.

His parents ran out of their home and saw the driver lying face up on the road.

Oruche’s father tried to communicate with the man but he was unresponsive. The father then called for an ambulance.

Oruche told the police on June 13, 2024: “I pushed (the victim) off me. I remember that.”

He was arrested at around 4am that day.

The driver was discharged on Aug 7, 2024 and died o f other causes in June 2025.

Shaffiq Alkhatib is The Straits Times’ court correspondent, covering mainly criminal cases heard at the State Courts.

发布于 2026 年 9 月 7 日下午 5:14

更新于2026年9月7日下午5:14

2024年6月，Oruche Morgan Fidelis 对司机 Low Ek Yong 使用了暴力。

后来发现洛的颅骨骨折，并伴有脑损伤。

他于 2025 年 6 月因心脏病和大肠梗阻去世。

新加坡——2024年6月，一名男子饮酒后乘坐私家车返回位于金文泰的家中，并对司机使用暴力，司机随后被发现躺在路边。

9 月 7 日，23 岁的英国公民 Oruche Morgan Fidelis 被判处 5 天短期拘留令 (SDO) 和 100 小时社区服务。

获得特殊监护权的罪犯获释后将不会留下犯罪记录。

服完 SDO 后，奥鲁切必须在授权官员的监督下，于一年内完成社区服务。

此前，他否认了一项故意伤害 66 岁司机 Low Ek Yong 的指控，Low Ek Yong 被发现颅骨骨折并脑部受伤。

一年后，洛因其他原因去世——心脏病和大肠梗阻。

审判结束后，奥鲁切对修改后的指控——对受害者使用暴力——认罪。

法庭文件显示，他从洛的车里出来时，左臂举向了那位老人。

根据法律，这一举动构成袭击，因为它使洛担心奥鲁切即将对他使用暴力。

在修改指控时，地方法官吴约翰指出，虽然罗某头部受伤，但无法确定他是如何受伤的——是遭到袭击还是绊倒摔伤。

副检察官本杰明·洛在陈述中表示，2024年6月12日下午5点左右，被告陪同其老板前往驳船码头附近的一家环形路酒吧与两名客户喝酒。

奥鲁切喝了大约三品脱啤酒后，前往滨海湾的一家酒吧，在那里他又喝了更多酒。

他大约在晚上 10 点 30 分离开，通过网约车平台 Grab 叫了一辆车，然后上了受害者的车。

奥鲁切坐在后排，戴上 AirPods 耳机，然后睡着了。

晚上11点左右，汽车停在他家门外时，他还在睡觉。

检方指控称，受害者曾试图叫醒奥鲁切，但他始终没有反应。

“受害者随后下了车，并试图通过摇晃被告来唤醒熟睡的被告，”检察官说。

据检察官称，奥鲁切勃然大怒，扑向受害者并推搡了他。

该男子最终处于半昏迷状态，既不能听从指令移动，也不能对外界刺激做出反应。

Oruche 的代理律师是 Withers KhattarWong 律师事务所的 Shashi Nathan、Harjeet Kaur 和 Tan Jia Yi。

在审判期间，奥鲁切作证说，他“跌跌撞撞”地从车里出来，不认识摇晃他的人。

他还告诉法庭，司机打了他左脸一拳，他出于自卫还击。“我当时很害怕他会再次打我，”他补充道。

奥鲁切的母亲听到骚动，便通知了他的父亲。

他的父母跑出家门，看到司机面朝上躺在路边。

奥鲁切的父亲试图与那名男子沟通，但他没有反应。随后，父亲拨打了急救电话。

2024年6月13日，奥鲁切告诉警方：“我把（受害者）推开了。我记得这件事。”

他于当天凌晨4点左右被捕。

该司机于 2024 年 8 月 7 日出院，并于 2025 年 6 月因其他原因去世。

沙菲克·阿尔哈提卜是《海峡时报》的法庭记者，主要报道国家法院审理的刑事案件。