Singapore—A police station inspector faces two charges after allegedly molesting two men in January 2020.
Yick Wai Hong, 46, was charged in a district court on Tuesday (Apr 27) for allegedly molesting the two men at a police facility, according to The Straits Times (ST).
Because of a gag order, the names of the two men have not been disclosed. Neither does it say in court documents whether they are members of the Singapore Police Force (SPF).
In both instances, the station inspector is said to have pulled the men’s heads towards his groin. In the first incident, the head of the victim touched Yick’s groin when the station inspector pulled it towards himself.
ST reported that the station inspector was suspended from service earlier this month, on April 8, according to a statement given by the SPF.
“Officers of the Singapore Police Force are expected to uphold the law and maintain high standards of discipline and integrity. We deal with officers who break the law severely, including charging them in court,” a police spokesman is quoted as saying.
Yick could be given a two-year jail sentence and a fine or a caning for every count of molestation.
The station inspector’s bail was set at S$10,000.
He will be back in court on May 18.
Unfortunately, Yick is not the only officer in recent times who has faced molestation charges.
Two years ago, Senior Staff Sergeant Lee Sze Chiat was sentenced to one year in jail as well as one stroke of the cane after he was convicted of molesting two women while they were in custody.
The police officer, then 39, had been on the force for 17 years but was interdicted from service in December 2017.
Lee was found to have groped one woman and forced another to perform sexual acts on him, while both women were not only in custody but handcuffed. These offences occurred in an interview room at Jurong Police Divisional Headquarters.
District Judge Christopher Tan called what Lee did to the women a serious abuse of trust, The New Paper (TNP) said.
He took exception to the fact that the women had been in handcuffs while they were molested, saying, “What’s aggravating is that these restraints were actually physical strictures that the law empowers policemen to use to protect the innocent.
“But they were used to subjugate her to fulfil his desires.”
/TISG
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