After altercation with friend outside club, drunk woman found dead in bed by husband next day

Samuel Devaraj
The Straits Times
Dec 19, 2023

Frustrated at his friend who was drunk outside a club, Jason Ong Bing Qi grabbed and swung her forcefully to the ground, and left her lying there motionless.

With the help of passers-by, the woman managed to return home, where she was pronounced dead later that day.

An autopsy revealed that she had suffered injuries, including a fractured skull and bruised brain.

On Dec 19, Ong, 33, pleaded guilty to one charge of voluntarily causing hurt which causes grievous hurt.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Emily Koh said the woman – referred to in court documents as Joey – went for drinks with three friends at Club VOX in Magazine Road on Nov 5, 2022, at about 10.15pm. At the club, they chanced upon Ong, whom Joey had known since early 2022.

Joey’s friends headed home between midnight and 1am.

Ong asked Joey if she wanted to leave the club with him, and she agreed. When they left at about 1.20am, she was dragging her feet.

Said DPP Koh: “The accused knew that the deceased was drunk and she was mumbling when she talked.”

Ong could not book a Grab ride, so he tried to flag down a taxi. Joey, who was leaning heavily against him and holding on to him, suddenly sat on the ground.

Ong managed to pull Joey up, but she squatted down and refused to budge.

Said DPP Koh: “Frustrated and angry, the accused took the deceased’s phone and threw it on the grass patch nearby.”

Joey retrieved her phone and pushed Ong away, saying she wanted to go home. She also repeatedly refused his offer to take her home.

Frustrated, Ong suddenly grabbed her with both hands and swung her onto the ground forcefully. Joey landed on her back and lay motionless. Ong did not check on her condition and instead walked back to the club.

At about 2am, passers-by found Joey, still lying motionless, on the ground. She was taken to a nearby sheltered walkway. She did not reply when she was spoken to.

But she was able to answer her phone using its speaker mode when a friend who had been with her at the club called.

The friend arranged with one of the passers-by, a Grab driver, to take Joey home for $50.

When Joey reached home, her maid helped her into bed, cleaned her up and changed her clothes.

Her husband returned home at about 3.30am and heard her snoring. He slept beside her without waking her.

At around 11am, Joey was observed to be still snoring and her body was warm to the touch. But when her husband returned home at 3pm from lunch, he realised that she was no longer snoring.

Her eyes were open, but she did not respond when he nudged her, and her body was cold to the touch.

He called 995 and tried resuscitating her. When the paramedics and the police arrived, Joey was pronounced dead.

On Nov 8, 2022, Ong left Singapore to go to Thailand because he felt stressed after receiving calls from his friends and the police regarding his involvement with Joey, DPP Koh said.

He returned to Singapore on Nov 11, 2022, and was arrested on the same day.

In the course of investigations, Ong admitted that he had swung Joey’s body as he was frustrated with the situation, and that he had used too much strength.

Surveillance footage showed he had swung Joey so forcefully that it caused her body to flip over during mid-fall.

A forensic pathologist said that the injuries found on her were consistent with being sustained from the incident.

In court on Dec 19, DPP Koh noted that while Ong has a criminal record which includes driving-related offences, he does not have a history of committing violence-related ones.

She asked the court to sentence Ong to between 36 and 42 months’ jail, saying that the aggravating factors were Joey’s vulnerability – she was petite and drunk – and Ong’s own intoxication.

However, she also noted Ong’s remorse and that he was cooperative during investigations after he returned to Singapore.

Ong is scheduled to return to court for sentencing on Jan 16, 2024.

For voluntarily causing hurt which causes grievous hurt, Ong can be jailed for up to five years, fined up to $10,000, or both.