Convicted molester Terence Siow's probation sentence gets suspended pending prosecution's appeal
SINGAPORE — A 23-year-old undergraduate who was sentenced to 21 months’ probation and 150 hours of community service last week for molesting an MRT commuter was hauled back to court by the prosecution on Friday (4 October).
National University of Singapore (NUS) student Terence Siow Kai Yuan had his sentence stayed by District Judge Jasvender Kaur, after a successful application by the prosecution, which told the court that it has already filed an appeal against sentence.
In the public spotlight after sentencing
Siow has been in the public spotlight after his case was first reported by The New Paper last Thursday (26 September).
The student had pleaded guilty to one charge of molesting a 28-year-old woman, with two similar charges considered in sentencing as part of his plea bargain.
In September last year, Siow touched the victim’s thigh twice on board a North East Line train, before tailing her and touching her buttocks once while on an escalator at Serangoon MRT station.
The prosecution had sought six weeks’ jail, but Judge Kaur disagreed as she found Siow’s offences “minor intrusions”. A probation suitability report also said that his academic results showed he has the “potential to excel in life”, the judge noted in sentencing.
In the wake of the news report, a Change.org petition “Say NO to Favourable Sentences for ‘Educated’Sex Offenders” was started and quickly gained traction. It has since received over 76,000 signatures.
Law minister surprised by verdict
Minister for Law and Home Affairs K Shanmugam also took to his Facebook page a day after the TNP report to say, among other things, that he was surprised by the verdict and supports the prosecution’s plan to file an appeal.
Aside from the court case, NUS said Siow was given disciplinary sanctions including the suspension of candidature and mandatory counselling after a Board of Discipline hearing last October.
A spokesman also said the university takes a serious view of misconduct and that disciplinary sanctions will enter a student's formal educational record.
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