A family of four was left shaken after a man in a wheelchair allegedly struck their car window with a wooden stick after they refused to give him money at a traffic light in Sungai Petani, Kedah.
The incident reportedly took place at about 10am on Monday at the traffic lights along Jalan Sekerat. The family had stopped at the junction when the man approached their vehicle while asking motorists for money.
According to the 38-year-old female passenger, identified as Ms Lim, her father was driving while her mother, herself and her child were also inside the car. When the man reached their vehicle, her father did not wind down the window or respond to his request.
The situation suddenly turned frightening when the man allegedly picked up a wooden stick and struck the car window. The family was caught off guard, as they did not expect the man to react aggressively after being ignored.
Lim said they were fortunate that the window did not shatter and that the glass was also covered with a tint film. She feared that broken glass could have injured her father’s face or eyes if the window had given way.
She later shared her experience on Facebook, where another motorist who had been behind the family’s vehicle contacted her. The driver had reportedly captured the incident on a dashcam.
The motorist was a pregnant woman who allegedly decided to turn left and leave the area after recording the incident, fearing that she too could become a victim.
Lim said she plans to lodge a police report the following day. She also described the incident as her first experience of this nature, saying the man’s alleged reaction left her frightened.
The report also highlighted that similar incidents involving people in wheelchairs approaching motorists for money have reportedly been observed in several areas of Sungai Petani. These include the area near Central Square, the road in front of Sungai Petani Prison and the Penang-Kedah trunk road near the turn-off towards Sungai Petani railway station.
Previous reports had also alleged that several wheelchair users were seen moving backwards through traffic queues, sometimes coming dangerously close to moving or stationary vehicles. Police had previously detained individuals linked to such incidents, with urine tests reportedly returning positive results for drugs.
The issue has also raised safety concerns for both motorists and vulnerable road users, particularly when such encounters occur at busy junctions. Any confrontation near moving traffic could potentially put multiple people at risk.
In another incident reported on May 15, an elderly wheelchair user was struck by a car near a food centre in the Taman Ria area of Sungai Petani. The wheelchair user was reportedly in the middle of a dimly lit road when the collision occurred, sending both the person and wheelchair flying. The incident was captured by a dashcam and later circulated widely on social media.
