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NILES — A Niles man who threatened his wife with a small knife was sentenced Monday in Berrien County Trial Court.

Babbu Singh, 56, of Niles, formerly from Punjab, India, pleaded guilty to domestic violence reduced from assault with a dangerous weapon and was sentenced to one year probation, 15 days in jail and $525 in fines and costs.

The incident occurred May 19 when he got into an argument with his wife at their Niles home and threatened her with a small knife.

Arnold noted that Singh had a blood alcohol level of .10 at the time of the incident. She said his prior assaultive history includes incidents in 2015 and 2016. “Here, he has had difficulty admitting to what he did,” she said. “He told the court earlier that he grabbed his wife because he didn’t want her to leave the house.”

Defense attorney Robert LaBre said that Singh has a closeknit family and has three children with his wife. They own a number of convenience stores in the area. He pointed out that Singh accidently hit his wife’s face when he was trying to grab her arm and that the weapon involved was a small cheese knife.

He said Singh’s previous assaultive crimes included an assault of his neighbor when he used hair spray to keep him away and then an incident involving his sister-in-law. He said Singh is addressing his alcohol issues and has stopped drinking.

Judge Smith said Singh has successfully completed a previous probation and noted that his wife wants to have contact with her husband at some point in the future.