SINGAPORE: 2 men convicted of molesting their Grab driver while venturing on the expressway had been on Thursday (Jul 7) sentenced in order to jail and caning.
Neo Wei Meng, 41, was given one year plus two months’ prison and three strokes of the cane, while Goh Suet Hong, 40, received the year’s jail and two strokes of the cane.
Previously this week, each guy was found guilty of one depend of using legal force to outrage the modesty of the then 28-year-old victim.
The target picked Goh plus Neo up in the Grab car at Neil Road right after midnight on November 12, 2018. They will told him he or she looked “very cute”.
They then carried out what a magistrate known as a “group sex-related assault” against the sufferer by touching him inappropriately, including his private parts plus nipples.
They did this while the victim drove through Neil Road to Neo’s home in Hougang, ignoring his repeated pleas to stop. This was the first lower-leg of the journey.
After Neo alighted, Goh then moved to the front passenger seat and continued the assault.
Goh touched the victim’s private parts plus kissed his lips as he drove to Goh’s home in Punggol. This was the 2nd leg of the journey.
The accidents took place in the car along the Central Expressway (CTE) in between 1 . 18am plus 3. 03am upon Nov 12, 2018.
PROSECUTION AMENDS SENTENCE
Mouthpiece Public Prosecutor David Menon sought fourteen to 15 months’ jail and 3 strokes of the cane for Neo.
He initially searched for nine to 10 months’ jail with no caning for Goh, but raised this particular to 12 in order to 13 months and two strokes from the cane after the courtroom sought clarification over the sentencing position.
Mr Menon explained on Thursday that Goh’s prolonged contact with the victim’s personal parts, even though it was not skin-to-skin contact, has been an aggravating factor that warranted caning.
He contended that the court seemed to be allowed to take into consideration Goh’s conduct during the very first leg of the trip. Goh was only charged for their assault of the target during the second lower-leg.
The phrase sought for Neo was higher in order to reflect the higher level of sexual intrusion from making skin-on-skin contact with the victim’s private parts during the initial leg.
Defence counsel Kalaithasan Karuppaya asked for leniency and mercy, and sentences at the lower selection of the penalties searched for by the prosecution.
VICTIM “TRAUMATISED”
Delivering his sentence, Magistrate Hairul Hakkim Kuthibutheen stated the experience of being “repeatedly and mercilessly” molested had left an “indelible mark” to the victim.
From trial, the target testified that he required about a month following the assault to continue his work as the Grab driver, as well as then only for a few hours each day.
The particular victim, who at this point delivers food, has said that he felt “traumatised” and was unable to face strangers, the magistrate noted.
He had told the court: “I do not dare to face the customer. So what I do is definitely I just hand the food at the door plus run away. ”
The magistrate got as aggravating aspects the victim’s standing as a public transport worker, Goh and Neo’s state of voluntary intoxication at the time and the fact that they will assaulted the sufferer while he has been driving, endangering your pet and other road users.
He said that Neo’s offending was irritated by his prolonged skin-to-skin contact with the particular victim’s private components.
He stated that while Goh’s offending involved indirect contact with the victim’s private parts, it was nevertheless prolonged contact plus Goh also kissed the victim for approximately three minutes.
The magistrate furthermore considered the instant background to Goh’s offences, which was the group sexual assault with Neo during the very first leg of the trip.
He furthermore considered Goh’s activities for which he had not been charged, including making skin-to-skin contact with the victim’s personal parts during the very first leg.
Magistrate Hairul Hakkim emphasised that he was just empowered to sentence Goh for their offences during the second leg for which this individual was charged.
He said it was “not the role of the courts” in order to question why the particular prosecution chose not to charge Goh just for his actions throughout the first leg, or include details of his conduct during each legs in a single cost.
He added that if either had been done, Goh could have received a weightier sentence than Neo.
“One can say that Goh has been doing what Neo did, which is to touch the victim’s (private parts) skin-to-skin, plus more within the second leg, ” said the justice of the peace.
Both Goh and Neo possess filed appeals against their convictions and sentences.
They can have been jailed for approximately two years jail, fined, caned or any combination of these punishments regarding using criminal force to outrage a person’s modesty.