Man, 23, kills dog by throwing it on bed and smashing it against wall, jailed 12 weeks

A man abused a dog belonging to the brother of his then girlfriend during the course of six months, which ultimately resulted in the dog dying on Christmas Day in 2016.

Gerald Kok Zhin Oi, 23, had flung treasure, a 3½-year-old toy poodle, towards a bed three times, and it hit the wall on the last attempt, killing it. 

Kok was sentenced to 12 weeks’ jail on Thursday (Feb 8) after admitting to four of seven charges of ill-treating the dog at his ex-girlfriend’s Toa Payoh home between July and Dec 25, 2016.

He is also banned from owning a pet for one year after his release from jail. 

Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) prosecutor Yap Teck Chuan told the court that during the period, Kok who was still serving his national service would stay over at his girlfriend’s home. 

In July 2016, Treasure bit Kok without any reason, reports The Straits Times. 

Kok’s girlfriend’s brother, Mr Ng Han Xiong, 30, suspected that Kok was abusing his dog, and installed a closed-circuit television (CCTV) in his bedroom to monitor Treasure’s condition. 

Mr Ng also asked his mother not to leave Treasure alone with Kok. 

He left for Japan on Dec 22, 2016, but switched on the CCTV camera before he left.

On Christmas morning, Kok visited his girlfriend’s flat.  

At about 5.20pm, his girlfriend and her mother left for dinner, leaving him and Treasure alone. 

Just as they were heading out, the mother suddenly recalled that her son had asked her not to leave the dog alone with Kok.

The pair quickly went back home from the void deck. 

They discovered Kok standing near his girlfriend’s room with bloodied tissue paper, while Treasure was lying motionless on the floor. 

Kok told the mother and daughter that he had dropped Treasure accidentally after he slipped and fell while carrying it to the bedroom.

Kok’s girlfriend subsequently brought the dog to the vet where it was pronounced dead. 

An X-ray report showed that Treasure had suffered neck and skull fractures due to blunt force trauma to its head. 

CCTV footage retrieved showed Kok hitting Treasure with a sofa cushion and a plastic clothes hangar, before throwing it across the bed. 

Mr Yap asked for a jail term of at least 3½  months, citing that Treasure had suffered prolonged abuse by Kok.

Kok’s lawyer Josephus Tan pleaded for a term not longer than 10 weeks, saying that his client has anger management problems and is currently seeking help at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH). 

For ill-treating the dog, Kok could have been fined up to $15,000 and/or jailed up to 18 months on each charge. 

His sentence has been deferred to March 1, 2018.