The entire busload of migrant workers erupted into hushed discussions as they strained their necks to identify the apprehended felon among their dormitory mates. They watched intently as the policewoman whipped out her mobile phone and called for reinforcements. This was the most exciting thing to happen since they had come to work in Singapore. A handful who owned smartphones switched on the video function to record the scene. They did so stealthily; it would not do for the policewoman to notice them and confiscate their phones.

To their shock and delight, the bus driver suddenly jumped into action. He raced down the aisle shouting with urgency. They could not understand his words, for he was shouting in Hokkien, but they could tell that he wanted the policewoman and the felon off the bus. A heated argument ensued. Those seated near the front could not hear properly for the two buses in the queue behind them had begun to blast their horns impatiently. The smartphone owners now stood up and filmed the action blatantly. These would be priceless clips they could share with their friends and family back in India and Bangladesh.

At one point, the bus driver grabbed the scrawny felon by his arm and forcefully dragged him towards the front exit. Enraged, the felon’s bunkmate in the adjacent seat tried to stop him but the aisle was narrow and the undercover policewoman was in the way. The entire busload scrambled to the left side and watched through the window as the four of them tussled and stumbled out of the bus. It became apparent that the bus driver wanted to leave the felon and his bunkmate behind and drive off. The felon’s bunkmate started a heated argument, adamant that the two of them should not be abandoned. The bus driver insisted that he had the right to boot the troublemakers from his bus and turned to board the vehicle himself. When the bunkmate attempted to shove his friend up the steps, the bus driver swivelled around, lifted his leg and aimed a hard kick at the scrawny felon’s chest that sent him tottering backwards. The entire bus gasped. A collective rage surged as someone shouted in indignant protest, “This is intolerable!”

The bus driver fired up the engine and locked the front door, unaware that he had incurred the migrant workers’ wrath. When he inched his vehicle forward at an angle to circumvent the toppled rubbish bin, he saw the felon’s bunkmate spring into his path to block his advance. Cursing, he slammed his palm onto the vehicular horn and held it there, adding another layer of ear-piercing honking to the cacophony from the buses stalled behind. Glaringly illuminated by the headlights, the stubborn troublemaker held his ground and refused to move.