Woman fined for hosting 20-person birthday party at her flat during COVID-19 pandemic
(Photo: Pexels/Ami Suhzu)
SINGAPORE: A woman was fined S$4,500 by a court on Thursday (Mar 3) for allowing 19 people to enter her Hougang flat during the COVID-19 pandemic for a birthday gathering.
Vietnamese national and Singapore permanent resident Ngo Thi Ai, 36, pleaded guilty to one count of breaching a COVID-19 regulation by letting 19 people into her home. A second charge was taken into consideration.
At the time of the offences on Aug 19, 2020, the maximum group size allowed under prevailing COVID-19 guidelines was five.
The court heard that Ngo was a coffee shop attendant at the time.
On that day, Ngo and co-accused Ta Xuan Anh, a 48-year-old coffee shop attendant, had planned to celebrate Ta's birthday.
The birthday party was to take place at Ngo's three-room flat in Hougang. The two women invited their friends, and Ngo prepared food for the guests.
The guests began arriving from 7pm on Aug 19, 2020.
At about 10.25pm, a member of the public called the police to report that there were more than 15 people in the flat.
Police officers went down and found a total of 20 people in the unit. They took down the details of the individuals and instructed them to disperse.
A total of 17 people, including Ngo, were charged with breaching COVID-19 regulations over the birthday party.
The remaining three individuals returned to Vietnam in September 2020.
Ngo is the last to be sentenced. Her 16 co-accused were fined between S$3,000 and S$4,000 after pleading guilty to their respective charges, said the prosecutor.
The difference in their fines was due to their difference in culpabilities, such as whether they had invited other people to the gathering or not.
The prosecutor asked for a S$5,000 fine for Ngo, saying her fine should be higher as she was the joint organiser of the event and had provided her home as the party venue.
Her plea of guilt should not carry much weight, as the group was caught red-handed by the police, he said.
The judge allowed Ngo to pay her fine in instalments.
For breaching a COVID-19 regulation, she could have been jailed up to six months, fined up to S$10,000, or both.
