For private security officers, it is not uncommon to be scolded and sometimes punched or kicked. Many shrug off such treatment as part and parcel of the job. When things get physical, they are expected to step aside and alert the authorities.

A viral video in April documented a dispute at the Roxy Square carpark that left 60-year-old security supervisor Andrew Lim with a swollen eye, a sprained neck and broken spectacles.