Man kissed woman's hand on train and offered her money to go to Hotel 81, gets jail
Photo illustration of a man committing molest. (Photo: Jeremy Long)
SINGAPORE: A man "looking for girls" found one at a train station and offered her money to spend the night with him before kissing her hand.
For using criminal force on the 24-year-old woman to outrage her modesty, Indian national Meesala Siva Prasad was sentenced to five days' jail on Thursday (Jan 2).
Another charge of causing her distress by offering her S$100 to go to Hotel 81 with him was taken into consideration.
Meesala, a 34-year-old software engineer, had his earlier plea of guilt rejected by a judge as he denied intending to commit the crime, claiming it was part of his culture.
However, he admitted fully to the offences on Thursday under a different judge.
The court heard that Meesala approached the victim at about 10.50pm on Jun 27 last year, while she was walking towards the train at Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station.
He asked her how to get to the North East Line and the woman let him follow her there.
On the way, Meesala told the victim that he was looking for girls and she asked him what type he was looking for.
When he asked if she would like to go to Hotel 81, she refused.
They boarded the same train and he told her to spend the night with him, taking out his wallet to offer her money.
Even though the woman rejected him, Meesala took her right hand and kissed it.
This shocked and disgusted the woman, who did not know how to react, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Jotham Tay.
At some point in their conversation, Meesala also asked the woman for her number. She gave it to him out of fear. He called her number to confirm that it was accurate and eventually alighted at Little India.
The prosecutor on Thursday said the case would have normally been met with a fine, but Meesala had been in remand for some time, so he left the sentence to the court.
Meesala wrote a letter to the judge in mitigation, and told the court that he had lost his job because of the offence and had two young daughters and a wife to take care of.
He said this was a big lesson in his life and pleaded for leniency.
The judge agreed that a normal sentence would have been a fine, "but I can't backdate a fine".
She sentenced him to five days' jail and backdated it.
For outraging the victim's modesty, Meesala could have been jailed for up to two years, fined, caned or given any combination of these punishments.
