Man fined for smashing sauce bowl into another man’s face at Haidilao
A bowl and a moment of anger cost Jason Esaias Gao Weijie $12,000.
Upset with another patron for placing a bowl of food on the condiments counter at the Clarke Quay outlet of popular hotpot chain Haidilao, Gao, 34, grabbed the man's neck and smashed his porcelain sauce bowl into the victim's face.
He also pushed Mr Eugene Lee Wei Liang, 33, who was left with a 1.5cm-long wound on the bridge of his nose.
For causing hurt to Mr Lee, Gao was yesterday fined $4,000. He also paid $8,000 in compensation to the victim, the court heard.
The incident happened at about 3.30am on Jan 12.
Having supper with his friends, Mr Lee was eating from a bowl as he queued at the condiments counter. When he reached the front of the line, he placed the bowl on the counter while he refilled his sauce bowl.
This riled Gao, who was queuing behind Mr Lee, as he felt it was unhygienic, Deputy Public Prosecutor Shana Poon told District Judge Toh Han Li.
Gao told Mr Lee to remove the bowl and they got into an argument. When Mr Lee turned to leave with both the bowl of food and his sauce bowl in hand, Gao assaulted him and had to be pulled away by onlookers. Mr Lee's friend called the police.
This was caught on the restaurant's closed circuit television camera and the footage was shown at yesterday's hearing.
In mitigation, Gao's lawyer Raphael Louis said Mr Lee's injury was not serious and his client made compensation at a very early stage, noting that the amount was more than the $2,400 Mr Lee spent on medical and related expenses.
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