2 weeks' jail for man who took photo of a male actor using the toilet
SINGAPORE — A 35-year-old who played an extra in a drama series was sentenced to two weeks' jail on Friday (June 23), after he pleaded guilty to two charges of voyeurism for taking and sharing a photograph he took of a male artiste using the toilet.
Tay Bai Chen, who was working as a deliveryman at the time of the incident, chanced upon the male actor in the toilet during a break in filming and then circulated the photo to his friends through messaging platform WhatsApp.
Due to a court order, the name of the victim cannot be published.
WHAT HAPPENED
Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Janice See told the court that around noon on April 10, 2021, Tay was at the Mediacorp building to play an extra in a Channel 8 Chinese drama.
During a break in the filming, Tay went to the toilet on the first floor of the building where he noticed the actor using the urinal.
Tay then used his mobile phone to take a photo of the actor from the back, knowing full well that the victim was unaware of the photo being taken, DPP See said.
The photo was sent to two WhatsApp chat groups named "1314friendsforever" and "DingDong".
Accompanying the photo was a message in the Chinese dialect Hokkien, asking who wanted to see the actor's private parts.
Feeling that it was inappropriate of Tay to be sending such photos, one of the members in the "1314friendsforever" group contacted the actor through Instagram.
Tay was eventually identified after the actor's manager reached out to the individual who first contacted the victim through Instagram.
The actor later made a police report on May 15, 2021, where he stated that he was "extremely traumatised" by the incident and felt "so violated" that such photos of him were being taken and shared online.
He also said that Tay needed to be punished and for disciplinary action to be taken against him.
Court documents did not state if Tay was arrested after the police report was filed.
Speaking on behalf of Tay, lawyer Cory Wong said that this was an atypical case of voyeurism and distribution, and that his client did not do this for sexual gratification.
Mr Wong added that Tay had taken the photo in "poor taste" so as to brag to others in his chat groups.
In delivering his sentence, District Judge Paul Chan noted that these offences had been done opportunistically, but it should not understate the distress caused to the victim since there was still harm involved.
For taking photos of the actor doing a private act, Tay could have been jailed for up to two years, fined or caned, or with any combination of these punishments.
Anyone guilty of distributing an intimate image or recording of a person can be jailed for up to five years, fined or caned, or with any combination of these punishments.
In a statement to TODAY, Mediacorp said: "We would like to share that we have not engaged the extra actor since the incident. We are unable to comment further."
