SINGAPORE: A man was fined S$2,000 by a court on Tuesday (Mar 9) for breaking COVID-19 laws when he left his home during Phase 1 of Singapore's reopening to have sex and a massage in a shop in Chinatown.
China national Ma Changjin, 51, pleaded guilty to one count of meeting with co-accused Zhang Shaohui, 52, at a shop in People's Park Centre on the afternoon of Jun 13, 2020, for sex and a body massage.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAnother two charges - of not wearing a mask and for leaving his house - were considered in sentencing.
The court heard that Singapore was fighting the spread of COVID-19 at the time of the offences in June 2020. Under the law, individuals could not meet each other for unpermitted social purposes at the time.
The court heard that Ma arranged with Zhang to meet her for massage and sexual intercourse for an undisclosed sum.
He went to Zhang's massage establishment at 101 Upper Cross Street at about 2pm, where they talked before proceeding to have sex.
AdvertisementAdvertisementThe encounter lasted about 15 minutes, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Jason Chua. While they were having sex, the police arrived to conduct an enforcement check on massage establishments.
They caught both Ma and Zhang - who is set to plead guilty to her involvement in April.
The prosecutor asked for a fine of S$2,000, saying that he took into account the fact that "it was brief", lasting for about "15 minutes but interrupted by police".
There were only two people in the meeting, he said.
AdvertisementDefence lawyer Arthur Quay said this was Ma's first brush with the law and he has learned his lesson. He added he would not repeat his mistake and asked for leniency.
The judge noted that Ma is supporting a family back in China and has not committed any offence in the more than 10 years that he has been in Singapore.
For breaking a COVID-19 regulation, he could have been jailed up to six months, fined up to S$10,000, or both.
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