Tan Pwee Sin was sentenced to seven years’ preventive detention in court today for animal cruelty, as well as other separate charges of criminal intimidation and dishonest retention of stolen property. He had killed his neighbor’s cat earlier this year with a carving knife — simply because the creature had annoyed him.
No stranger to life in a prison cell, the 67-year-old was sentenced to life imprisonment in 1996 for culpable homicide, but he was allowed to walk free in 2010 after 14 years in jail.
It was on Jan 30 at his Blk 1 Spooner Road flat that Tan used a carving knife to slash the abdomen of Vamp, his neighbor’s Russian Blue cat. The pet cat’s intestines were exposed, and it was rushed to a veterinary clinic after the Agri-Food & Veterinary Authority of Singapore (AVA) was notified. Tragically, the feline died of its injuries the next day.
Apparently, Tan had butted heads with his neighbor before, challenging him to a fight and boasting that he had spent time behind bars for stabbing someone to death.
A psychiatric report showed that Tan had a low threshold for anger and displayed anti-social personality traits, including “impulsivity and aggression” and “reckless disregard for the safety of others”, reported Channel NewsAsia.
For the separate charge of receiving stolen property, it was in relation to another incident involving $6,950 from anonymous sources, linked to a police impersonation scam.
The punishment of preventive detention is aimed at repeat offenders who are considered beyond rehabilitation and a menace to society.
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