Woman caught on video spitting at KFC employee pleads guilty

A woman who was caught on video spitting at a KFC service manager last year pleaded guilty yesterday to one count each of harassment and using criminal force on the victim.

A third charge under the Covid-19 regulations will be taken into consideration for sentencing.

At about 12.40pm on April 22 last year, Lin Si Ting, 43, went to the KFC outlet at Nex shopping mall and placed her order.

After about six minutes, she approached the counter again and shouted at the staff, demanding to know why her order was taking so long and wanting it to be served immediately.

The service manager, a 40-year-old woman, apologised and explained to Lin that there were orders ahead of hers.

When Lin was told to wait about five more minutes, she was unhappy and demanded a refund if it could not be served immediately.

The service manager agreed to the refund and asked for the receipt, which Lin threw at her. While the refund was being processed, Lin pulled down her mask and spewed a string of vulgarities at the staff.

She also pointed at the service manager and said: "Wait for you to die, wait for your whole family to die."

Lin then spat at the victim twice, with the spittle landing on the woman's arm, before leaving with her refund.

A few minutes later, she returned to the outlet and claimed she had been shortchanged on the refund.

The victim confirmed the refunded amount was correct after checking the order records. Lin shouted at the victim as her colleagues called the police. Lin left before the police arrived.

The court was told yesterday that Lin is being treated for schizophrenia.

District Judge May Mesenas called for a report to determine Lin's suitability for a mandatory treatment order (MTO).

Lin is expected to be back in court on Feb 25 for sentencing.

For causing intentional harassment, Lin can be fined up to $5,000, jailed for up to six months, or both.

She can also be jailed for a maximum of three months, or fined up to $1,500, or both, for using criminal force on a person.