NSF on probation used concealed app to take 19 upskirt videos
SINGAPORE — He was put on probation for filming 11 upskirt videos of female victims and was prohibited from using mobile devices with a camera function.
But three weeks after being sentenced, Lim Jia Jun, 22, a full-time national serviceman with the Singapore Armed Forces, went on a crime spree, recording 19 such videos in two hours in Chinatown.
A victim who confronted the perpetrator could not find any incriminating evidence on his phone. But an eyewitness who was sure of the crime called the police, who managed to retrieve the concealed upskirt videos.
Lim had used an app on his phone, which allows videos to be recorded in the background while the phone is being used as normal. The app also stores recordings within the application itself and not in the phone’s media folder.
At the State Courts on Wednesday (27 November), Lim pleaded guilty to six charges of insulting a woman’s modesty.
He is expected to be sentenced on 6 January.
Caught red-handed
At about 2.15pm on 29 November last year, Lim held on to his mobile phone while squatting behind a woman in a knee-length skirt at the Daiso outlet at Chinatown Point. The victim was browsing items on a shelf. Lim then stood up quickly and walked away.
An eyewitness, Koh Kheng Boon, saw what Lim was doing and suspected that he had taken an upskirt photo. Koh told a Daiso staff member about the matter and the staff went up to the victim and Lim.
The victim confronted Lim and asked to see his Sony Xperia mobile phone. But she did not find anything incriminating on it and left the store.
Said Deputy Public Prosecutor Benedict Chan, “Lim then approached Koh to ask what was going on. Koh stated that he saw Lim taking an upskirt photograph. Lim then challenged Koh’s claims.”
The Good Samaritan called the police saying, “I detained one guy for upskirt, require police here.”
Lim initially denied any wrongdoing to policemen. But a forensic examination of his phone uncovered 19 upskirt videos.
Changed app icon
Lim had used an app, which stored videos recorded within the app itself. Said DPP Chan, “The said application also allowed the user to change the display icon, which Lim did in order to conceal the said application’s true function. This was the reason why the woman...was not able to find any incriminating images when she searched Lim’s mobile phone.”
The 19 upskirt videos were taken between 12.09pm and 2.15pm at or around Chinatown Point. These included a 34-second video at Chinatown MRT station. There was also a video recorded at the Chinatown Point NTUC Fairprice outlet that lasted five minutes and eight seconds, and a film taken at the Watsons outlet at the same shopping mall that lasted 2 minutes and 48 seconds.
Said DPP Chan, “He admitted to browsing voyeuristic forums, and stated that he wanted to experience the thrill of engaging in the act of taking upskirt images himself. He targeted women who were wearing skirts or dresses, so long as they were not too old for his liking.”
On 8 November last year, 21 days before his crime spree, Lim was sentenced to 21 months’ probation for taking upskirt videos. He pleaded guilty to three proceeded charges, with another eight counts considered for sentencing.
As part of his sentence, he was banned from using mobile devices with a camera function unless assessed by a psychologist to be suitable to do so. No such assessment has been made.
For insulting a woman’s modesty, Lim faces up to one year in jail and a fine per charge.
Separately, on 25 March, Koh received the Singapore Police Force's public spiritedness award from the commander of Central Police Division for his actions.
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