Singapore
By Zhaki Abdullah 24 Jun 2021 06:27PM (Updated: 24 Jun 2021 06:30PM )
SINGAPORE: A man was sentenced to seven days in jail on Thursday (Jun 24) for leaving the hotel room where he was serving his COVID-19 stay-home notice last year and going to meet his wife to celebrate his birthday.
Bai Fan, a 38-year-old American and Singapore permanent resident, had arrived at Changi Airport Terminal 1 on Sep 19, 2020 from Shanghai, following a 19-hour transit in Hong Kong.
The court heard that Bai’s request to serve his stay-home notice at his residence rather than at a dedicated facility was denied.
This was because a surge in COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong at the time meant it was mandatory that all travellers with a travel history to the territory - including those in transit - would have to serve their notice at a dedicated facility.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Timotheus Koh noted that an Immigration and Checkpoints Authority officer told Bai to remain in his room at the Fairmont Hotel on Bras Basah Road for the duration of his notice period - from Sep 19 to Oct 3 last year - and to call a hotline if he required assistance during that time. The accused was said to have understood the instructions.
When he arrived at the accommodation, hotel staff reminded him that he was to remain in his room and told him to read an information sheet issued by the Singapore Tourism Board, which included a reminder to stay in the room at all times during the 14-day period.
Investigations showed that on Sep 20, 2020, the accused spoke to his wife over the phone and asked her to get a birthday cake for him, said Mr Koh.
The couple arranged to meet near the hotel, with Bai’s wife driving the family car to pick him up.
Bai left his room at 7.05pm that day and made his way from the Fairmont Hotel’s South Tower, where his room was, to the North Tower, which was occupied by guests who were not on stay-home notice.
The prosecution pointed out that the doors linking the north and south towers were barricaded by furniture to prevent people from crossing between the two towers.
“The accused circumvented the barricades and entered the North Tower,” said Mr Koh, noting Bai then took the lift down to the hotel driveway, where he met his wife and boarded the car.
Bai’s wife then drove the car to the basement carpark of the hotel, where they had a “long talk about their relationship”, the prosecution added.
After their time together, Bai's wife drove him back, dropping him off at the hotel driveway. Bai re-entered his room at 12.08 am.
Despite having reason to suspect he had come into contact with COVID-19 due to his transit in Hong Kong, Bai had chosen to breach his stay-home notice requirements and expose others to the risk of infection, Mr Koh said.
Bai’s lawyer, SS Dhillon, noted that his client had originally travelled from mainland China - which did not require a stay-home notice - and that he did not interact with anyone nor leave the airport lounge during his transit in Hong Kong.
Bai was thus "mentally totally unprepared” to serve a two-week stay-home notice, Mr Dhillon said, adding that his client would not have flown to Singapore had he known he would have to serve the notice.
Mr Dhillon noted that CCTV footage showed that his client had worn a mask at all times while outside his hotel room.
In addition, Bai was shown to not have COVID-19 at the end of his stay-home notice, proving he was of “no risk” during that time, the lawyer said.
A 10-day jail term as the prosecution had called for would be disproportionate, given his client’s “low risk of transmission” and “low culpability”, Mr Dhillon said.
The prosecution however countered that the defence’s emphasis on Bai’s original point of departure being Shanghai was a “red herring”, given the restrictions on all travellers who had travelled through Hong Kong at the time.
In addition, Mr Koh pointed out that Bai had moved through publicly accessible areas and had deliberately circumvented security measures to meet with his wife.
A separate charge of meeting his wife on Sep 19 was taken into consideration.
An ICA statement in March noted the couple had spent about an hour and 40 minutes together in the car on that date.
For committing an offence under the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 - Stay Orders) Regulations 2020, Bai could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$10,000 or both.
Foreign nationals face further penalties, including the revoking or shortening of their permits and passes to remain or work in Singapore.
Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram
Source: CNA/az
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Man jailed for breaching COVID-19 stay-home notice to meet wife for his birthday
View of Fairmont Singapore Hotel. (Photo: Facebook/Fairmont Singapore)By Zhaki Abdullah 24 Jun 2021 06:27PM (Updated: 24 Jun 2021 06:30PM )
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SINGAPORE: A man was sentenced to seven days in jail on Thursday (Jun 24) for leaving the hotel room where he was serving his COVID-19 stay-home notice last year and going to meet his wife to celebrate his birthday.
Bai Fan, a 38-year-old American and Singapore permanent resident, had arrived at Changi Airport Terminal 1 on Sep 19, 2020 from Shanghai, following a 19-hour transit in Hong Kong.
The court heard that Bai’s request to serve his stay-home notice at his residence rather than at a dedicated facility was denied.
This was because a surge in COVID-19 cases in Hong Kong at the time meant it was mandatory that all travellers with a travel history to the territory - including those in transit - would have to serve their notice at a dedicated facility.
Deputy Public Prosecutor Timotheus Koh noted that an Immigration and Checkpoints Authority officer told Bai to remain in his room at the Fairmont Hotel on Bras Basah Road for the duration of his notice period - from Sep 19 to Oct 3 last year - and to call a hotline if he required assistance during that time. The accused was said to have understood the instructions.
When he arrived at the accommodation, hotel staff reminded him that he was to remain in his room and told him to read an information sheet issued by the Singapore Tourism Board, which included a reminder to stay in the room at all times during the 14-day period.
Investigations showed that on Sep 20, 2020, the accused spoke to his wife over the phone and asked her to get a birthday cake for him, said Mr Koh.
The couple arranged to meet near the hotel, with Bai’s wife driving the family car to pick him up.
Bai left his room at 7.05pm that day and made his way from the Fairmont Hotel’s South Tower, where his room was, to the North Tower, which was occupied by guests who were not on stay-home notice.
The prosecution pointed out that the doors linking the north and south towers were barricaded by furniture to prevent people from crossing between the two towers.
READ: Man charged with breaching stay-home notice after leaving hotel twice to meet wife in car
“The accused circumvented the barricades and entered the North Tower,” said Mr Koh, noting Bai then took the lift down to the hotel driveway, where he met his wife and boarded the car.
Bai’s wife then drove the car to the basement carpark of the hotel, where they had a “long talk about their relationship”, the prosecution added.
After their time together, Bai's wife drove him back, dropping him off at the hotel driveway. Bai re-entered his room at 12.08 am.
Despite having reason to suspect he had come into contact with COVID-19 due to his transit in Hong Kong, Bai had chosen to breach his stay-home notice requirements and expose others to the risk of infection, Mr Koh said.
Bai’s lawyer, SS Dhillon, noted that his client had originally travelled from mainland China - which did not require a stay-home notice - and that he did not interact with anyone nor leave the airport lounge during his transit in Hong Kong.
Bai was thus "mentally totally unprepared” to serve a two-week stay-home notice, Mr Dhillon said, adding that his client would not have flown to Singapore had he known he would have to serve the notice.
Mr Dhillon noted that CCTV footage showed that his client had worn a mask at all times while outside his hotel room.
In addition, Bai was shown to not have COVID-19 at the end of his stay-home notice, proving he was of “no risk” during that time, the lawyer said.
A 10-day jail term as the prosecution had called for would be disproportionate, given his client’s “low risk of transmission” and “low culpability”, Mr Dhillon said.
The prosecution however countered that the defence’s emphasis on Bai’s original point of departure being Shanghai was a “red herring”, given the restrictions on all travellers who had travelled through Hong Kong at the time.
In addition, Mr Koh pointed out that Bai had moved through publicly accessible areas and had deliberately circumvented security measures to meet with his wife.
A separate charge of meeting his wife on Sep 19 was taken into consideration.
An ICA statement in March noted the couple had spent about an hour and 40 minutes together in the car on that date.
For committing an offence under the Infectious Diseases (COVID-19 - Stay Orders) Regulations 2020, Bai could have been jailed for up to six months, fined up to S$10,000 or both.
Foreign nationals face further penalties, including the revoking or shortening of their permits and passes to remain or work in Singapore.
BOOKMARK THIS: Our comprehensive coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic and its developments
Download our app or subscribe to our Telegram channel for the latest updates on the coronavirus outbreak: https://cna.asia/telegram
Source: CNA/az
Continue reading...