A man of Indian descent was given a 10-month prison sentence after entering a guilty plea to charges of intentionally hurting another person with a hazardous weapon and using criminal force to violate a woman’s modesty.
A news report stated that Singaram Palianeapan, 61, followed a domestic helper into an elevator, where he sexually assaulted her, trapping her for about ninety-nine seconds.
Singaram struck a guy three times in a bicycle shop while he was free on bond, about a month later, using a metal chain around his fist. The court considered four other accusations that were comparable when determining the appropriate sentence.
According to court records, Singaram offered the domestic worker money to buy herself a drink on September 28, 2022, when she was out purchasing meals. She turned down his offer at first, but gave in to his persistence and took the money.
She went to grab her food, and then she and Singaram went back to her employer’s house. When they got to the housing block’s elevator, Singaram pushed the button for level 17, but he stopped the woman when she tried to press the button for level 5.
According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Jordy Kay, Singaram started abusing the employee as soon as the lift moved. When the elevator reached level 17, Singaram was waiting outside the doors, beckoning the victim to accompany him.
He returned to the elevator and chose the seventh floor when she declined. He persisted in abusing the domestic assistance while the elevator moved. Singaram spent almost a minute and twenty-eight seconds in the elevator with the victim, and Kay claimed that the lift’s CCTV camera recorded every move he made.
Singaram was taken into custody on September 28 and was out on bond the next day.
About a month later, on October 28, Singaram addressed the proprietor of his friend Hu Jianpeng’s bicycle shop about the issues he was having with the personal mobility equipment he had purchased while Yeoh Su Kai was there.
Following an altercation between the two, Singaram pulled a metal chain from his personal mobility device, wrapped it around his right fist, and delivered three punches to Yeoh.
Kay said that although the level of sexual exploitation was low, there was still an attempt to touch the domestic worker’s chest area, and she requested a sentence of nine to eleven months in prison for Singaram.
DPP Kay also addressed the assault on Mr. Yeoh, highlighting that the metal chain used was serious given that the injuries were to the victim’s head.