TV actor Julian Hee has been accused of road rage by a retired school principal, who claimed that he twice cut into his lane, then "spoiled for a fight" at the roadside afterwards.
Mr Adrian Cordeiro said the Chinese drama actor "flexed his muscles", plucked Mr Cordeiro's glasses from his face and threw them to the ground. When the older man put them back on, Mr Hee allegedly repeated his actions.
The former Teck Whye Secondary principal, 65, took to Facebook on Sunday night to tell of his encounter and his post was soon circulated by other users, some of whom branded the actor a "bully".
Mr Cordeiro told The Straits Times he had been driving along Bedok South Avenue 1 towards Bedok on Saturday afternoon. He said Mr Hee's black Honda sports utility vehicle "swerved" into his lane from the right without signalling, forcing him to slam on the brakes of his Mitsubishi Lancer to avoid a collision.
"Naturally, I honked at him and he sped forward," said Mr Cordeiro, who decided to chase after the driver. "I caught up with him and drove parallel to his car. I wound down the window and told him that he shouldn't have done that. It was very discourteous."
But Mr Hee carried on driving and turned right onto New Upper Changi Road, said Mr Cordeiro, who followed suit. "Suddenly, he cut into my lane again and jammed his brakes in front of my car. I had no choice but to stop. He then got out of his car and headed furiously towards me."
It was only when Mr Hee got out that he recognised the MediaCorp actor. "He tried to shut my door when I opened it to get out of my car," Mr Cordeiro claimed. "His body language was threatening."
The two men got into an argument but no vulgarities were used, said Mr Cordeiro. But he claimed Mr Hee, 35, grabbed his spectacles. "I picked up my glasses and put them on and he plucked them off my face and threw them on the ground again. I told him that he had done that twice and he said that he would do it a third time."
By then, a small crowd had gathered near the two motorists, said Mr Cordeiro, who decided to end the argument. "If I had retaliated, it would not look good on me. I did not react even when he probed me with his fingers. He was clearly heated up and spoiling for a fight."
Mr Cordeiro said he made a police report and posted about the incident online to highlight the problem of road rage, but added that it was now "water under the bridge".
But Mr Hee denied the accusations and said he had also made a police report about Mr Cordeiro. He told The Straits Times: "His reckless driving almost got a motorcyclist killed.
"My conscience is clear and I am confident that justice will prevail."
