SINGAPORE — Seeing his household's domestic worker taking a nap on the sofa, a man decided to molest her while she was in a defenceless position but was foiled when his victim woke up and caught him in the act of undoing her blouse.

Shocked at being found out, the man then begged his victim for forgiveness. She forgave him but said that she would not forget what happened.

Several months later, the man's wife and daughter found out when the incident came to light during an argument over the helper's work performance. He then turned himself in to the police. 

In the State Courts on Monday (Sept 4), the 54-year-old man was sentenced to 13 months’ jail. He had pleaded guilty to using criminal force with intent to outrage modesty at an earlier hearing. The names of everyone involved cannot be published to protect the victim. 

While meting out the sentence, District Judge Elton Tan said that the victim had been in a vulnerable position as she was sleeping. 

“The offence was also aggravated because it was done in the sanctity of her home, where she would have expected to feel secure,” he said.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The court heard that at about 3pm on Oct 26 in 2021, the worker was taking a nap on the sofa, but woke up when she felt someone touching her. 

Upon opening her eyes, the first thing she saw was the man on top of her, with both of his hands on her blouse. 

He was in the process of unbuttoning her blouse and his head was on her chest, the court heard.  

The prosecution said that the man later admitted during investigations that he had been tempted to touch the woman’s chest when he saw her sleeping on the sofa. 

He first used his hand to touch her forehead to see if she was still asleep and began to molest her when she did not respond. 

Upon waking and seeing the man touching her inappropriately, the woman immediately pushed him away and kicked him in the torso. 

Shocked that he was caught in the act, the man quickly apologised to the victim and begged her for forgiveness.

After she forgave him, she realised that one of the buttons of her blouse had already been undone and her bra had been moved, exposing her left breast. 

Before her nap, her blouse had been fully buttoned and her bra in the correct position, court documents stated.

The court heard that the man’s deeds came to light half a year later on April 22 last year.

The pair got into a dispute over the victim’s work performance and the man began shouting at her, attracting the attention of his wife and daughter, court documents showed.

When the man’s wife intervened, the worker revealed that she had been molested by him previously. 

The man then admitted to his wife and daughter and said that he had indeed touched the victim's chest while she was asleep.

On hearing this, the man’s wife agreed to the victim’s request to end her employment. The wife is the victim's employer.

The man's daughter also took the victim to the Indonesian Embassy in Singapore as her employment agency’s lodging was full.

The man then filed a police report about his actions later that same day. 

Court documents showed that the victim had a good working relationship with the man and each member of his household, and had no disputes with anyone before the incident. 

Appearing in court in a wheelchair, the man told the court that he was warded in Ng Teng Fong Hospital on Aug 24 and would need another two to three weeks to rehabilitate in the hospital.

Taking into account the man’s medical condition, District Judge Tan ordered him to carry out his sentence three weeks later on Sept 26. He was also given an extra two months’ jail in lieu of caning. 

For his actions, the man could have been jailed up to three years, fined and caned.