Repeat offender who yelled ‘corona, corona’ during Covid-19 pandemic jailed 7 months for new offences

SINGAPORE – A recalcitrant offender, who had been incarcerated multiple times since 2014, was jailed for seven months on Wednesday after he caused a ruckus at Changi General Hospital (CGH).

Jasvinder Singh Mehar Singh, 54, had earlier made the headlines when he spat on the floor at the Crowne Plaza Changi Airport hotel in March 2020 and yelled “corona, corona” amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

He was then sentenced to two months’ jail in April 2020 after being convicted of one count each of committing a rash act and being a public nuisance.

He was also ordered to spend an additional 55 days behind bars at the time, as he had breached a remission order after his early release from prison in February 2020.

In August 2021, he was ordered to spend 13 weeks and 12 days behind bars after he pleaded guilty to one charge each of uttering words to wound the religious feelings of another person and being drunk in public.

Separately, he was convicted of harassment in April 2022 and sentenced to 10 weeks’ jail.

For his current case, Singh pleaded guilty to two counts of harassment and one count of using criminal force on a public servant.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Stephanie Koh said Singh had gone to CGH’s accident and emergency department on Aug 22, 2022, to seek treatment for a condition, which was not disclosed in court documents.

He was sitting in a wheelchair at around 4.30pm when he used criminal force on a 25-year-old auxiliary policewoman by pulling her staff pass that was then attached to a lanyard around her neck.

It was not stated why he did so, but police officers who later arrived at the scene found that he reeked of alcohol at the time.

Singh then turned the pass over to look at the other side and pulled it again. The woman officer stepped backwards to stop him from making contact and told him not to touch her.

The DPP said Singh, who was agitated, shouted vulgarities and threw his belongings on the floor. As he was making a scene and annoying other patients, hospital staff called the police.

She said: “The accused also caused damage to the IV (intravenous) pole of the hospital wheelchair that he was using. When the police arrived, they observed that the accused appeared intoxicated and smelled of alcohol.”