Japanese man took upskirt videos of 5 women in 30 mins

A Japanese man sent to Singapore by his company to apply for a visa to work in Indonesia took upskirt videos of five women within half an hour at an MRT station in June, a court heard.

But Yoshitaka Takahashi, 26, was caught red-handed by his last victim at Tanjong Pagar MRT Station.

He shoved her aside, but the victim, 27, gave chase and managed to detain him with help from members of the public.

At the State Courts on Monday (23 December), Takahashi was jailed for four weeks.

He pleaded guilty to one charge of insulting the modesty of a woman.

Stood behind victim on escalator

At about 1.20pm on 17 June, Takahashi, who was staying at Amara Singapore hotel along Tanjong Pagar Road, saw the victim going towards an escalator at Tanjong Pagar MRT Station. She was wearing a midi skirt, which has its hem halfway between ankle and knee, below the widest part of the calf.

Takahashi followed behind the victim and stood behind her as she rode up the escalator. He took out his iPhone and placed it beneath her skirt to record a video.

The victim felt some movement around her skirt and turned around to see the culprit in the act. She held on to him, but he shoved her away and fled.

The victim then gave chase and detained Takahashi with the help of passers-by at the concourse of Capital Tower. A member of the public called the police.

While waiting for officers to arrive, Takahashi took out a second iPhone and handed it to the victim. She checked the phone and did not find any incriminating photos of videos.

The perpetrator then requested to use the toilet and a security officer working at Capital Tower escorted him there. Inside a cubicle, Takahashi deleted the incriminating video from the first iPhone.

When policemen arrived, the culprit initially denied taking any upskirt videos. But he later confessed to taking not just a video of the victim, but four such videos of four different women at the same MRT station in the 30 minutes prior to that. He deleted all the incriminating evidence before officers arrived.

The maximum punishment for insulting the modesty of a woman is up to one year in jail and a fine.

Other Singapore stories:

Elmark ceiling models recalled due to potential safety hazards

US game publisher Valve sues Singapore-based GESC over $750,000 debt: report