As molester case after molester case seems to have popped up the past few months featuring every disgusting act from outright groping to upskirt photos, netizens are beginning to weigh in on the events that have been unfolding. While the latest National University of Singapore molester Terence Siow Kai Yuan may have allegedly escaped jail time thanks to his “potential to contribute to society,” a defense lawyer has tried to use the precedent of the student’s case to get his client out of a three-year jail sentence for taking upskirt photos of teenage girl.
Who is Terence Siow and how did he get out of jail time?
Failed attempt to use good work ethic and education to get out of jail
In a report by TODAY, the case of a 43-year-old man who took upskirt photos of teenage girls in January all the way up to October of 2017 was heard on October 1. The pervert, an insurance agent by the name of Fong Poh Kuen, was convicted of six charges of stalking and secretly taking photos of girls outside various secondary schools and junior colleges across Singapore.
The convicted stalker admitted to interviewing his victims first under the pretense of an educational survey, being able to get their phone numbers, addresses, and other important information. He then inputted them into a sinister database he created to track their routines so he could stalk them and take photos of them without their knowledge or consent. He followed one girl for 15 to 20 minutes as she went on her commute, and she said that he had scared her. The girl continues to require her father to take her home everyday due to her trauma from the incident.
For his crimes, Fong was sentenced to three months in jail and a $8000 fine. But his defense lawyer, Krishna R Sharma, cited similar circumstances in his client’s life that been part of the reason Terence Siow avoided jail and instead got probation and community service for the latter’s crimes.
According to the same report by TODAY, the defense stated that Fong was a graduate of Nanyang Technological University, and that he was a certified chartered financial analyst who had worked with large firms such as Prudential and AIA. The lawyer also said that his client was actually studying before his arrest to become a financial planner with Manulife.
The lawyer also cited that his client had a mental illness, which brought him to the point that he could not manage relationships or control himself in the moment of his crimes.
The judges in the case, however, did not accept the defense’s mitigation.
Read Terence Siow’s apology letter that never got to the victim if it weren’t for the media.
Netizens call out Fong’s lawyer and how the cases turned out
Some mentioned that the request for a lighter sentence without jail time didn’t push through because Fong was from NTU and not NUS. They even suggested that educated people should be punished harsher since they allegedly have more knowledge of the law.
One commenter mentioned that people with cases in court could start referring to Terence Siow’s case more often, and start citing their education or grades as part of mitigation.
This commenter also pointed out that university fees may allegedly rise even further because a degree has power in certain areas it didn’t have any bearing before.
What do you think of Terence Siow’s case and how the lawyer used it to try to get their client out of jail? Let us know in the comments!
