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A student at the National University of Singapore (NUS) admitted to taking voyeuristic videos, including those of women showering on campus last year.
Joel Rasis Ismail, 27, had done so despite learning of the uproar sparked by a similar incident in 2018, Assistant Prosecutor Andre Ong told the court yesterday.
That incident involved Ms Monica Baey, who was filmed showering by a fellow NUS student.
Yesterday, Joel pleaded guilty to three counts of insulting a woman’s modesty and one of breaking and entering.
Seven other similar charges will be taken into consideration during sentencing on Sept. 28 by District Judge Adam Nakhoda.
The victims cannot be identified due to a gag order.
Court documents indicate that the NUS student was staying in the Raffles Hall dorm when he committed the crimes.
On two occasions in March last year, Joel went to the third level of the Kuok Foundation House, which is part of Raffles Hall, to visit a friend.
He went there despite knowing that it was a “women-only” flat forbidden to men, the prosecutor said.
Both times, he went to a bathroom on the same level to relieve himself, and heard a woman enter an adjacent stall each time.
On one occasion, he placed his mobile phone in the space between the cubicle partition and the bathroom floor and recorded the woman showering, according to court documents.
Two months later, Joel attacked again. She went to the female restroom on the sixth level, also zoned as a “female only” floor, of the same building to film a schoolmate taking a shower.
The court heard that when it found that the video recording was “flawed,” it took another video of the woman, but she caught it.
He then fled to the third level to collect his dirty clothes and change clothes before running back to his residence.
Police arrested him a few hours later, after reviewing closed-circuit television footage.
Later he admitted his crimes.
Ong said Joel had committed the crimes knowing of public unrest caused by a similar incident at another residence in 2018.
That incident, which involved Ms Baey, prompted NUS to tighten security on its campus and review its disciplinary and support frameworks.
Court documents also indicate that Joel had recorded two videos under the skirt of a colleague at work during an internship in 2016.
His attorney Malcolm Tan said he would ask the Institute of Mental Health for a report on the likelihood that his client will relapse.
For each count of insulting a woman’s modesty, Joel could be jailed for up to one year and fined.
You could also be jailed for up to three months and / or a fine of up to $ 500 for criminal trespass.
In a statement yesterday, NUS said that Joel is currently on a three-semester suspension and is not allowed on campus.
“NUS has improved the disciplinary framework for crimes of sexual misconduct since June 2019, including suspension and expulsion, as well as security measures,” he said.
The university said it is providing greater support to victims of such crimes. It has also introduced training for all staff and students to build a culture of respect.
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