[ad_1]
SINGAPORE: After being harassed by her supervisor, a woman felt uncomfortable working at the company and eventually resigned due to the incident.
The 31-year-old supervisor was sentenced to six months in jail Tuesday (Oct. 20) after pleading guilty to one count of sexual abuse, and another count was taken into consideration. He cannot be named due to gag orders protecting the identity of the victim.
The court heard that the defendant had been working for the company for almost four years when the victim, who was 24 at the time, joined the firm as a logistics coordinator.
She was under the man’s supervision and had been working for about three months when the crimes occurred.
At approximately 4:30 p.m. on March 27, 2018, the victim had finished her work at the warehouse when she made her way to the landing of a staircase that was the designated smoking area for employees.
She sat in a chair to smoke and the accused joined her. He stood in front of her and asked her a question, but when the victim looked at him to answer, he grabbed her by the jaw and kissed her on the lips without her consent.
The victim tried to call a friend on the phone to have a reason to leave, but none of her friends answered.
The defendant asked him for another kiss and the victim pushed him to leave. The man then grabbed her by the chest before leaving.
The victim was “terrified and shocked,” the prosecutor said, and began to feel uncomfortable working at the company because of the actions of her supervisor.
“She thought her employer would not believe her due to the defendant’s longer time with the company. Shortly thereafter, the victim left the company sometime in April 2018 because of what happened,” said Assistant District Attorney Ho Linming.
He asked for at least six months in jail, saying the crime inflicted psychological damage on the victim and its effects “cannot be ignored.”
LEE: Man jailed for sexually abusing a colleague while working late at the office
As the victim’s supervisor, the man had betrayed his trust, the prosecutor said. There was also “a clear imbalance of power” between the two.
Defense attorney SS Dhillon said his client pleaded guilty at the earliest available opportunity and had no prior convictions.
He said the man, an Indian national, has been working in Singapore for more than four years and has lived here since November 2014.
“Your Honor, you are deeply sorry and regret your actions and therefore accepted your request at the earliest available opportunity,” said Mr. Dhillon. “His job will be laid off and he will be repatriated to his country and that will be a sufficient deterrent punishment in itself.”
He said his client “respects the laws of Singapore” and wishes to apologize to the victim.
The judge said the man’s guilt was high for being the victim’s supervisor, but took into account his remorse. The man’s mandate was pushed back to July 15, when he was placed in preventive detention.
For using criminal force to outrage the victim’s modesty, the man could have been imprisoned for up to two years, fined, flogged, or given any combination of these punishments.
