A 68-year-old man who repeatedly assaulted fellow residents and staff at a nursing home, and later set a mattress on fire, has been sentenced to jail following a series of violent incidents at the facility.
Jahalal Ali was jailed for 15 weeks on Tuesday after pleading guilty to two counts of voluntarily causing hurt and one count of mischief by fire. He was also handed an additional 49 days’ imprisonment for breaching a remission order tied to earlier offences, which required him to remain offence-free between Jan 9, 2023, and June 18, 2025. Four other charges were taken into consideration during sentencing.
According to court documents cited by The Straits Times, Jahalal was a resident at the Bukit Batok Home for the Aged and shared a room with 80-year-old Chua Seng Huat.
On March 5, 2024, a care worker found Jahalal punching and kicking Chua in the head after becoming upset over noise made by his roommate during the night. Chua was later examined at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital and was found to have sustained no serious injuries.
The violence escalated on Nov 18, when Jahalal again attacked Chua after being asked to leave a hall. He slapped and punched the elderly man before stepping on his chest as he lay on the ground, causing injuries to Chua’s left elbow that required him to wear an arm sling.
In a separate incident on Aug 15, Jahalal threw a mattress from the second floor after becoming dissatisfied with the food served at the home. He later went downstairs and set the mattress on fire using a lighter. A staff member extinguished the fire and alerted the police.
Weeks later, on Sept 26, Jahalal slapped a female resident twice and struck a male staff member with a chair. He has remained in remand since then.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Ng said Jahalal displayed “a consistent pattern of antisocial and aggressive behaviour” over more than two years at the home, noting that the same victim had been targeted twice within an eight-month period.
“It should be strongly impressed upon the accused that he cannot continue to behave in this manner if he continues living in a home,” the prosecutor said.
In mitigation, Jahalal apologised via video link, expressing remorse and asking to be allowed to return to the nursing home as soon as possible.
