NUS student fined S$3,000 for deflating tyres of seven cars to protest SUVs

A student at the National University of Singapore (NUS), 24-year-old Benjamin Chia Yit Loong, was fined S$3,000 on 6 November 2025 after pleading guilty to a charge of mischief in relation to a string of tyre deflations carried out in November the previous year.

Chia, a Singaporean undergraduate, admitted to deliberately deflating the tyres of seven vehicles—mainly sport utility vehicles (SUVs)—at two multi-storey carparks along Woodlands Drive 14.

The acts were part of a personal protest against what he viewed as the environmental harm caused by large, fuel-intensive vehicles.

The incident occurred on the morning of 19 November 2024. According to court proceedings, Chia purchased a packet of green beans from a nearby shop before heading to the carparks near his residence.

Once there, he targeted vehicles that appeared to be SUVs or larger-sized cars. He approached each vehicle, unscrewed the tyre valve caps, and inserted one or more green beans into the valves before replacing the caps. The result was a gradual release of air from the tyres.

Chia deflated all four tyres of the first car he encountered. For the subsequent vehicles, he deflated one or two tyres each. In total, seven vehicles were affected.

After deflating the tyres, Chia placed printed fliers on the windscreens of the affected vehicles. These fliers explained the motivation behind his actions.

One section of the flyer read: “Attention — your gas guzzler kills. We have deflated one or more of your tyres. You’ll be angry, but don’t take it personally. It’s not you, it’s your car.”

Another statement emphasised the broader impact of driving large vehicles in urban settings, declaring that such behaviour “has huge consequences for others.”

One of the affected car owners attempted to drive his vehicle to a petrol station with the deflated tyres. During the process, the rear end of the car scraped against the kerb of a parking lot space, damaging the rear spat. The repair cost totalled S$380, which Chia has since paid voluntarily as compensation.

He was arrested later the same day, following complaints from vehicle owners who discovered their tyres had been tampered with and found the protest fliers left behind.

During sentencing, the court heard that Chia had no previous criminal record and that the damage caused was relatively minor. The prosecution sought a fine rather than a custodial sentence, citing Chia’s early admission of guilt, his voluntary compensation to the damaged vehicle owner, and the limited financial harm incurred.

The maximum penalty for mischief under Singapore law includes a jail term of up to two years, a fine, or both. In this instance, the court imposed a fine of S$3,000.

NUS responded to queries by confirming that it takes allegations of student misconduct seriously, including criminal offences committed outside of the campus environment. The university has indicated that internal disciplinary proceedings will follow the conclusion of legal proceedings. However, no specific details about possible sanctions were disclosed.

The method used — inserting green beans into tyre valves — is similar to tactics promoted by the climate activist group Tyre Extinguishers, which has called for non-violent disruption of SUV use in urban areas.

Tyre Extinguishers is a loosely organised environmental protest movement that began in Europe and has spread to multiple countries.

The group encourages individuals to deflate the tyres of SUVs and similar vehicles in urban areas in an effort to reduce the popularity of high-emission transport.

According to the group, such vehicles are among the largest contributors to recent growth in carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions and are considered unnecessary in well-developed urban transit environments.

In statements published online, the group insists its aim is to create “inconvenience, not harm” and to pressure individuals to switch to smaller, more climate-friendly modes of transportation. It is not publicly known whether Chia was affiliated with this group or whether his actions were inspired by them independently.