Man, 20, gets probation after twice trying to film older sister showering

Man, 20, gets probation after twice trying to film older sister showering Pre-sentencing reports said the man's father appeared to condone his son's actions, while the young man himself seemed to regard his attempts to film his sister showering as a "prank". SINGAPORE: A man who tried on two occasions to secretly film his older sister while she was showering was sentenced to 18 months’ supervised probation on Monday (Aug 17). The man, now aged 20, earlier pleaded guilty to two counts of voyeurism. The victim, who is two years older than him, lived in the same residence. In addition to the supervised probation, the court imposed a curfew on the accused. He was also ordered to perform 40 hours of community service, reside at his paternal aunt's home and attend a therapy programme, among other conditions. The accused cannot be named to protect the identity of the victim. On July 9, 2024, at about 9.53pm, the man went to the service yard of his flat while his sister was showering in the common toilet. The service yard had a frosted window with louvres looking into the toilet. He held his mobile phone below the window and recorded a 19-second video, which turned out pitch black but captured the sound of his sister showering, according to court documents. Minutes later, he held the phone up to the window panel and positioned it close to the bottom louvre to take a 47-second video, intending to record the victim showering. The recording did not capture his sister and showed only the window and the wall beneath it. SISTER SPOTS SECOND ATTEMPT Three days later, between midnight and 1am, the man again went to the service yard intending to record a video of his sister showering. He extended his phone towards a slight opening in the middle louvre of the window. He was adjusting the camera angle when his sister spotted the phone. She then screamed and shouted. The man had not been begun recording yet. At about 4am that day, the victim made a police report. The man was arrested later that day. PROSECUTION SEEKS REFORMATIVE TRAINING The prosecution argued for reformative training instead of probation, saying the offences called for a measure of deterrence. Under probation, a young offender is placed under the supervision of a probation officer for a specified period and must comply with certain conditions. Probation does not result in a permanent criminal record. Reformative training is a regimented rehabilitation programme for young offenders who commit relatively serious crimes and results in a criminal record. Deputy Public Prosecutor Vanessa Tan said that the man had targeted his sister in their shared family home, where she had “every reasonable expectation of privacy and safety”. She also pointed to how the accused had tried to record her showering on two separate occasions, which suggested that his actions were premeditated rather than an isolated lapse of judgment. CAREGIVERS AVOIDED DISCUSSING SEXUALITY Ms Tan also said pre-sentencing reports showed a history of "inadequate and ineffective familial supervision and guidance" of the accused. One report stated that the accused's caregivers avoided discussing issues of sexuality, which could have limited their supervision and guidance of the accused on healthy sexuality. Another report noted that the accused's primary caregiver, his father, was “often unaware of (the accused’s) developmental needs" and “seemed to feel helpless and had limited capacity to give guidance". "The accused’s father appeared to have condoned the accused’s offending by downplaying the seriousness of his actions. Beyond a verbal reprimand to the accused, his father failed to take any follow-up actions or to process the gravity of the incident between the siblings," Ms Tan said, citing the report. The prosecution noted the accused's previous brushes with the law, and argued that less restrictive interventions in the past had had a limited deterrent effect on him. The man received a conditional warning over a 2018 theft and a warning over a 2023 case of mischief. Ms Tan said the man did not appreciate the gravity of his offences and the harm caused, pointing to a section of a report where the accused appeared to have described his actions as a "prank" on his sister and said he believed she was not hurt or affected. The accused was quoted in the report as saying that if the victim was scared of him, she would not be living in the same house. For voyeurism, an offender can be jailed for up to two years, fined, caned, or receive any combination of these punishments.