SINGAPORE - A jobless man who stabbed a friend in the buttocks with a pair of scissors in a row over a $20 debt was jailed for six months on Friday.

Teo Chin Choon, 58, admitted causing hurt to removal man Mr Sim Kang Ming, 44, who suffered cuts on his left thigh and buttock at the 12th floor lift lobby of Block 3 Marsiling Drive.

A district court heard that Teo had been visiting a friend at the block on June 22 when Mr Sim dropped by with five cans of beer.

While the two were drinking, Teo reminded Mr Sim that he owed him $20 - sparking an argument.

Teo then asked Mr Sim to buy him two or three "Nitra" sleeping tablets to compensate him instead. Deputy Public Prosecutor Tay Jingxi told the court that when these are consumed with beer, they make the person feel "high".

The duo's mutual friend told them not to cause trouble and leave the flat.

Later the pair continued their row at the lift lobby but it soon escalated into a fight. Teo managed to overpower Mr Sim and grab a pair of scissors he had been holding. He stabbed him in the buttocks and upper legs several times, causing him to fall to the ground.

Teo grabbed his ez-Link card, phone, identity card and $15 before fleeing. He spent the money on cigarettes and a can of soft drink. He was arrested the next day.

Teo, whose sentence was backdated to June 24, could have been jailed for up to five years, fined, caned or received any two punishments.