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SINGAPORE: He had led the 15-year-old girl to believe that he would help in her time of distress - only to abuse that trust later by molesting her.
And "bad pennies" like cabby Heng Swee Weng, who threaten the "unquestioning trust" the public have come to place in the integrity of public transport workers here, must face the music, a High Court judge ruled on Tuesday.
Agreeing with Deputy Public Prosecutor Aedit Abdullah's call for a deterrent sentence that "protected the interests of passengers on public transport vehicles", Justice V K Rajah upped the 56-year-old's $2,000 fine to eight weeks' imprisonment.
The court heard that on the night of Nov 1 last year, the girl, a permanent resident from Australia, missed her bus-stop in the Bedok area and could not find her way home. The student cannot be named.
She flagged down Heng's taxi and he agreed to help her although she had no money for the ride.
After she alighted, Heng got out, walked over and then hugged her. Alarmed, the teenager struggled and broke free.
Her mother reported the matter to the police later.
Cabbies who commit sexual offences against their passengers are rare in Singapore, said DPP Aedit.
Thus, a custodial sentence was warranted to send a clear signal that public transport workers who abuse their position of trust would be punished, he argued.
Heng's lawyer Raymond Tan told the court that his client had hugged the girl with the intention of comforting her. Heng claimed that she was "afraid and lost" and her eyes were red during the ride.
But Justice Rajah said the public was "entitled to expect that public transport workers will not engage in inappropriate behaviour".
The fact that the public has been "accustomed to have unquestioning trust in the integrity" of these workers meant that an "unequivocal message" had to be sent out to show inappropriate behaviour would not be tolerated, added the judge.
Heng will start his sentence on Dec 8. He could have been jailed up to two years or fined or caned. - TODAY/vm
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